Outer Membrane Vesicle and Ferroptosis-Related Signatures in Sepsis-Associated Acute Lung Injury Caused by Extra-Pulmonary Hypervirulent Klebsiella Pneumoniae
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- This is an observational study: the protocol does not assign a study treatment.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Sepsis, Acute Lung Injury(ALI), Klebsiella Pneumoniae Infection, Hypervirulent Klebsiella Pneumoniae Infection. Basic parameters: 18 years — 85 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Center list to be confirmed — check the primary protocol.
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Official title
Circulating Bacterial Outer Membrane Vesicle Signatures and Ferroptosis-Related Biomarkers in Sepsis-Associated Acute Lung Injury Among Patients With Extra-Pulmonary Hypervirulent Klebsiella Pneumoniae Infection: A Prospective Observational Translational Cohort Study
Overview
This prospective observational translational cohort study will investigate whether extra-pulmonary infection caused by hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae (hvKP) is associated with an increased risk of sepsis-associated acute lung injury (SALI), compared with infection caused by classical Klebsiella pneumoniae (cKP). The study will further examine whether circulating bacterial outer membrane vesicle (OMV) signals and ferroptosis-related biomarker profiles are associated with subsequent SALI development. Adults with Sepsis-3 and microbiologically confirmed extra-pulmonary K. pneumoniae infection will be enrolled within 6 hours of sepsis recognition. Patients with acute lung injury at enrollment will be excluded from the primary cohort. Blood samples will be collected at enrollment, 24 hours, and 72 hours. Clinical isolates will undergo molecular characterization to classify infections as hvKP or cKP. The primary outcome will be new-onset SALI within 7 days after enrollment. A nested translational substudy will evaluate the effects of patient-isolate-derived OMVs on human pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells. The study will not alter antimicrobial therapy, source control, respiratory support, fluid management, or any other aspect of routine clinical care.
Detailed description
Sepsis-associated acute lung injury is a major complication of severe extra-pulmonary Gram-negative bacterial infection. Hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae (hvKP) is increasingly recognized as a cause of invasive infection with a high inflammatory burden and a propensity for metastatic spread. Bacterial outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) are biologically active nanoparticles that may transport lipopolysaccharide, virulence-associated molecules, and other inflammatory cargo to distant organs. Experimental evidence suggests that OMV-mediated oxidative stress and ferroptosis-related injury may contribute to pulmonary endothelial dysfunction and acute lung injury; however, the clinical relevance of these mechanisms in patients with extra-pulmonary hvKP sepsis remains unclear.
This prospective multicenter observational translational cohort study will investigate the relationship among molecularly characterized hvKP infection, circulating bacterial OMV-related signals, ferroptosis-related biomarker profiles, and the subsequent development of sepsis-associated acute lung injury. Adults with microbiologically confirmed extra-pulmonary Klebsiella pneumoniae sepsis will be enrolled early after sepsis recognition and followed during the acute phase of illness. Clinical isolates will undergo molecular characterization for prespecified hypervirulence-associated genes and additional strain-level features. Blood specimens collected during routine early follow-up will be processed using standardized procedures for plasma, serum, and peripheral blood mononuclear cell analyses.
The laboratory component will quantify circulating Gram-negative bacterial OMV-related signals in platelet-depleted plasma and evaluate systemic ferroptosis-related biomarker profiles, including lipid peroxidation products, glutathione redox status, iron-related indices, and ferroptosis-associated gene expression. Patient-derived Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates will also be cultured under standardized conditions for OMV isolation and characterization.
A nested translational substudy will compare OMVs derived from representative hvKP and classical Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates. Equal-particle-number OMV preparations will be applied to human pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells to assess lipid peroxidation, ferroptosis-related molecular changes, endothelial barrier integrity, and the in vitro rescue effect of Ferrostatin-1. No investigational intervention will be administered to study participants, and all clinical management will remain at the discretion of the treating physicians.
Primary outcome measures
- Incidence of New-Onset Sepsis-Associated Acute Lung Injury [Time frame: From enrollment (T0) through Day 7]
Secondary outcome measures (6)
- Circulating Gram-Negative Bacterial Outer Membrane Vesicle-Related Signal [Time frame: At enrollment (T0), 24 hours, and 72 hours after enrollment]
- Ferroptosis-Related Biomarker Profile [Time frame: At enrollment (T0), 24 hours, and 72 hours after enrollment]
- Lowest PaO₂/FiO₂ Ratio (or SpO₂/FiO₂ Ratio) [Time frame: From enrollment through Day 7]
- Respiratory Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) Score [Time frame: From enrollment through Day 7]
- Ventilator-Free Days [Time frame: From enrollment through Day 28]
- All-Cause Mortality [Time frame: From enrollment through Day 28]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- Age 18-85 years .
- Clinical suspicion of infection with acute organ dysfunction consistent with suspected sepsis at the time of enrollment, as determined by the treating clinical team.
- Presumed extra-pulmonary source of infection at enrollment, including but not limited to hepatobiliary, urinary, intra-abdominal, skin and soft-tissue, vascular catheter-related, or primary bloodstream infection.
- Blood cultures and/or clinically indicated source cultures obtained or ordered as part of routine clinical care.
- Enrollment and first research blood collection completed within 6 hours after initiation of the clinical sepsis evaluation.
- No evidence of acute lung injury at the index time point, according to the protocol-defined criteria.
- Written informed consent obtained from the participant or legally authorized representative, unless an ethics-approved deferred-consent procedure is used.
Exclusion criteria
- Suspected or confirmed primary pulmonary infection at enrollment, including community-acquired pneumonia, hospital-acquired pneumonia, ventilator-associated pneumonia, or aspiration pneumonia.
Acute lung injury or acute respiratory distress syndrome present at the index time point.
- Acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema, acute decompensated heart failure, or another condition that would preclude reliable adjudication of subsequent non-cardiogenic acute lung injury.
- Recent inhalation injury, near-drowning, major thoracic trauma, or transfusion-related acute lung injury.
- Previous enrollment in this study.
- Inability to obtain informed consent from the participant or legally authorized representative when deferred-consent procedures are not permitted by the local ethics committee.
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: No
Study design
- Observational model
- Cohort
Study locations
Center list to be confirmed — check the primary protocol.
Publications
- Russo TA, Olson R, Fang CT, Stoesser N, Miller M, MacDonald U, Hutson A, Barker JH, La Hoz RM, Johnson JR. Identification of Biomarkers for Differentiation of Hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae from Classical K. pneumoniae. J Clin Microbiol. 2018 Aug 27;56(9):e00776-18. doi: 10.1128/JCM.00776-18. Print 2018 Sep. PMID 29925642
- Liu P, Feng Y, Li H, Chen X, Wang G, Xu S, Li Y, Zhao L. Ferrostatin-1 alleviates lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury via inhibiting ferroptosis. Cell Mol Biol Lett. 2020 Feb 27;25:10. doi: 10.1186/s11658-020-00205-0. eCollection 2020. PMID 32161620
- Lee JC, Lee EJ, Lee JH, Jun SH, Choi CW, Kim SI, Kang SS, Hyun S. Klebsiella pneumoniae secretes outer membrane vesicles that induce the innate immune response. FEMS Microbiol Lett. 2012 Jun;331(1):17-24. doi: 10.1111/j.1574-6968.2012.02549.x. Epub 2012 Apr 13. PMID 22428779
- Zhang J, Zhao J, Li J, Xia Y, Cao J. Outer membrane vesicles derived from hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae stimulate the inflammatory response. Microb Pathog. 2021 May;154:104841. doi: 10.1016/j.micpath.2021.104841. Epub 2021 Mar 7. PMID 33691173
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07686887 · 2025ZDSYLL431-P01 · 82572527 · BK20252100 · QNRC2016808 · zdyyxy29