Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42231444›Full record

ArticleJournal of translational medicine2026

Immunological differences in atopic dermatitis across age groups: insights from single-cell multi-omics.

Gian Carlo L Baldonado, Sugandh Kumar, Joy Jin, Xiaohui Fang, Alexander Ildardashty, Mitchell Braun, Isaac M Neuhaus, Erin Mathes, Tina Bhutani, Wilson Liao

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Article in Journal of translational medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

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No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Gian Carlo L BaldonadoDepartment of Dermatology, University of California, 2340 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA, 94115, USA. giancarlo.baldonado@ucsf.edu.ORCID 0009-0002-0940-9120
Sugandh KumarDepartment of Dermatology, University of California, 2340 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA, 94115, USA.
Joy JinDepartment of Dermatology, University of California, 2340 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA, 94115, USA.
Xiaohui FangDepartment of Dermatology, University of California, 2340 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA, 94115, USA.
Alexander IldardashtySackler School of Medicine, New York State/American Program, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
Mitchell BraunDepartment of Dermatology, University of California, 2340 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA, 94115, USA.
Isaac M NeuhausDepartment of Dermatology, University of California, 2340 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA, 94115, USA.
Erin MathesDepartment of Dermatology, University of California, 2340 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA, 94115, USA.
Tina BhutaniDepartment of Dermatology, University of California, 2340 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA, 94115, USA.
Wilson LiaoDepartment of Dermatology, University of California, 2340 Sutter Street, San Francisco, CA, 94115, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAtopic dermatitis (AD) occurs across all ages but presents distinct clinical and immunologic features between children, adults, and older adults. The molecular programs underlying these age-specific immune differences remain poorly understood.

methodsWe performed single-cell multi-omics profiling of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from 29 AD patients and 29 matched healthy controls (HC), spanning pediatric (0-17 years), adult (18-59 years), and geriatric (≥60 years) groups. Using Cellular Indexing of Transcriptomes and Epitopes by sequencing (CITE-seq), we simultaneously quantified transcriptomic (RNA) and surface proteomic (ADT) profiles across ~280,000 immune cells. Integrated analyses identified 30 immune subsets for cell-type proportion and differential expression analyses. Machine-learning classifiers were trained on significant gene and protein features to distinguish AD subgroups by age.

resultsCompared with HC, AD blood showed enrichment of CD14+ monocytes, plasmacytoid dendritic cells, and CD4+ proliferating T cells, and differential gene expression analysis of AD vs HC revealed downstream Th2-associated signatures shared across all age groups. Within AD, pediatric patients had increased γδ T cells, naïve CD4+, and naïve CD8+ T cells, while geriatric patients exhibited more CD4+ cytotoxic and CD8+ central memory T cells, indicating a shift from naive to effector predominance with aging. Transcriptomic and proteomic analyses revealed distinct programs: pediatric AD was enriched for IL-10 and cytokine-cytokine receptor signaling; adult AD demonstrated activation of metabolic and nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB)/Th1/Th17 pathways; and geriatric AD exhibited reduced adaptive immune activity but increased innate signaling. Machine-learning models based on differentially expressed genes and proteins accurately classified AD age groups (transcript-based F1 = 0.70, AUC = 0.79), identifying stable markers such as IRF2, PDK4, ZFP90, CD21, CD94, and CD122.

conclusionsSingle-cell multi-omics profiling revealed age-specific transcriptional and immunological programs overlaid on a shared Th2-driven inflammatory foundation in AD. Rather than discrete disease states, pediatric, adult, and geriatric AD each exhibited distinct molecular signatures: developmental and cytoskeletal in children, stress-response and chronic inflammatory in adults, and innate and metabolic in geriatric individuals. These findings support age-group molecular subtyping and age-tailored therapeutic strategies across the AD lifespan.

Indexed as

Dermatitis, AtopicMultiomicsSingle-Cell AnalysisAdolescentAdultAgedAge FactorsAgingCase-Control StudiesChildChild, PreschoolFemaleGene Expression ProfilingHumansInfantInfant, NewbornAge differencesAtopic dermatitisCITE-seqImmunologyMachine learningPeripheral bloodProteomicsSingle-cell multi-omicsTranscriptomics

Identifiers

PMID42231444
PMCPMC13445865

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.