YIM-O13. Development of novel protein biomarkers for the prediction of response to treatment in juvenile idiopathic arthritis

Introduction Standard management of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) is heavily dependent on the use of methotrexate (MTX), which induces clinical benefit in about 65% of patients. We have previously demonstrated that children with high serum levels of MRP8/14 protein prior to starting MTX have a high chance of good response to MTX. However, among children whose MRP8/14 serum levels are moderate or low, prior to MTX, some respond well whilst others respond poorly to MTX. We have taken a proteomics approach to identify novel biomarkers present in serum prior to treatment that correlate with response or non response to MTX.