Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) and macrophage activation syndrome (MAS) are 2 similar diseases characterized by a cytokine storm, overwhelming inflammation, multiorgan dysfunction, and death. Animal models of HLH suggest that disease is driven by IFN-γ produced by CD8 + lymphocytes stimulated by persistent antigen exposure. In these models and patients with "primary" HLH, the antigen persists due to genetic defects, resulting in ineffective cytotoxic responses by CD8 + T cells and poor pathogen clearance. However, infectious triggers are often not identified in patients with MAS, and some patients with HLH or MAS lack defects in cytotoxic T cell killing. Herein, we show that repeated stimulation of TLR9 produced an HLH/ MAS-like syndrome on a normal genetic background, without exogenous antigen. Like previous HLH models, TLR9-induced MAS was IFN-γ dependent; however, unlike other models, disease did not require lymphocytes. We further showed that IL-10 played a protective role in this model and that blocking IL-10 signaling led to the development of hemophagocytosis. IL-10 may therefore be an important target for the development of effective therapeutics for MAS. Our data provide insight into MAS-like syndromes in patients with inflammatory diseases in which there is chronic innate immune activation but no genetic defects in cytotoxic cell function.

Eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders, including eosinophilic esophagitis, gastroenteritis, and colitis, refer to a spectrum of clinical diseases that present with variable degrees of infiltration of the gastrointestinal tract by eosinophils in the absence of other known causes of tissue eosinophilia. Clinical symptoms and laboratory findings are usually non-specific and may or may not be accompanied by peripheral blood eosinophilia. The extent of eosinophilic infiltration of the gastrointestinal wall varies from mucosal to transmural and serosal involvement. Diagnosis requires presence of gastrointestinal symptoms, demonstration of gastrointestinal eosinophilia by biopsy, and exclusion of other known causes of tissue eosinophilia. Many studies have pointed toward the eosinophil as the major offender; however, the exact functional role of the eosinophil in the pathogenesis of eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders remains unclear. The roles of T-helper-2 cytokines and other mediators, such as eotaxin-1 and interleukin-5, have gained significant importance in the pathobiology of eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders. Current understanding of treatment is based on case reports and a few case series, as there is a lack of large prospective studies. Steroids are currently the mainstay of therapy, but the roles of other drugs such as leukotriene inhibitors, mast cell stabilizers, interleukin-5 inhibitors, and anti-immunoglobulin E, along with other targets in the immune pathway, are currently being explored.

Objective Macrophage Activation Syndrome (MAS) is a devastating cytokine storm syndrome complicating many inflammatory diseases and characterized by fever, pancytopenia, and systemic inflammation. It is clinically similar to Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), which is caused by viral infection of a host with impaired cellular cytotoxicity. Murine models of MAS and HLH illustrate Interferon-γ (IFN-γ) as the driving stimulus for hemophagocytosis and immunopathology. We sought to understand the inflammatory contributors to a murine model of Toll-like Receptor 9 (TLR9)-induced fulminant MAS. Methods Wild-type (WT), transgenic, and cytokine-inhibited mice were treated with an IL-10 receptor blocking antibody and TLR9 agonist, and parameters of MAS were evaluated. Results Fulminant MAS was characterized by dramatic elevations in IFN-γ, IL-12, and IL-6. Serum IFN-γ correlated with enhanced IFN-γ production within some hepatic populations, but fewer IFN-γ+ cells. Surprisingly, IFN-γKO mice developed immunopathology and hemophagocytosis comparably to WT mice. However, IFN-γKO mice did not become anemic and had greater numbers of splenic erythroid precursors. IL-12 neutralization phenocopied disease in IFN-γKO mice. Interestingly, Type I interferons contributed to the severity of hypercytokinemia and weight loss, but their absence did not otherwise affect MAS manifestations. Conclusion These data demonstrate that both fulminant MAS and hemophagocytosis can arise independently of IFN-γ, IL-12, or Type I interferons. They also suggest that IFN-γ-mediated dyserythropoiesis, not hemophagocytosis, is the dominant cause of anemia in fulminant TLR9-MAS. Thus, our data establish a novel mechanism for the acute anemia of inflammation, but suggest that a variety of triggers can result in hemophagocytic disease.