Molecular endotypes predict differential response to immunosuppressant therapy in non-idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis...

Interstitial lung diseases (ILDs) are a clinically and biologically diverse group of disorders characterized by varying inflammation and fibrosis of the lung parenchyma. Immunosuppressant therapy is commonly used to treat non-idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (non-IPF) ILD, but treatment response is variable and difficult to predict.

Identify and validate molecular endotypes of non-IPF ILD.

Twenty plasma proteins associated with inflammation were used to perform latent class analysis in 2 observational non-IPF ILD cohorts (discovery n = 676; validation n = 585). Proteins were measured using a semi-quantitative Olink Explore 3072 platform. The primary outcome was 3-year transplant-free survival. Weighted Cox regression was used to assess differential response to mycophenolate or azathioprine in each cohort according to molecular endotype classification.

A 2-class model best fit both cohorts (P <0.01), with Class 2 comprising ∼30% of patients. Compared to Class 1, Class 2 was associated with significantly lower 3-year transplant-free survival in both discovery (78% vs 36%, P <0.001) and validation (83% vs 46%, P <0.001) cohorts. Significant interaction between molecular endotype and immunosuppressant exposure was observed in both cohorts (discovery Pinteraction = 0.022; validation Pinteraction = 0.019), with survival benefit seen only in Class 2. In pooled analysis, similar trends were observed irrespective of ILD subtype. Pathway analysis supported enrichment of inflammatory signatures in Class 2.

In this multicenter observational cohort study, we identified and validated 2 distinct molecular endotypes of non-IPF ILD with divergent outcomes and response to immunosuppressant therapy. These endotypes could inform precision medicine strategies and clinical trial design in ILD.