A 49-year-old woman with severe demyelinating syndrome systemic lupus erythematosus (DS-SLE), where lupus affects the white matter in the brain, was successfully treated with Genentech‘s Rituxan (rituximab), along with other medications. The case report, “Severe neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus successfully treated with rituximab: an alternative to…
Genes found in African-Americans with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) may explain why they have a higher risk of atherosclerosis, a heart disease in which fatty deposits can clog arteries. The study arriving at that conclusion, “Apolipoprotein L1 risk variants associate with prevalent atherosclerotic disease in African American systemic…
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug status to the investigative therapy blisibimod for the treatment of immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN), according to Anthera Pharmaceuticals, the drug’s developer. IgAN, or Berger’s disease, is the main cause of primary glomerulonephritis — inflammation of the kidneys — associated with…
A study of more than 27,000 people of different ethnic origins revealed 24 new genetic markers that predispose for systemic lupus erythematosus, the most common type of lupus. People with more of the predisposing genetic markers are more likely to develop the autoimmune disease, the study found. In collaboration…
New mothers with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are less likely to breastfeed their infants, or to do so for a shorter span of time, than are woman without this disease — despite guidelines favoring breastfeeding throughout a baby’s first months of life, a study in Argentina reports. The study, “…
Researchers at Denver’s National Jewish Health have prevented autoimmune disease in mice prone to a lupus-like illness by eliminating a protein called T-bet. This protein, which helps transform a type of white blood cell into an age-associated B-cell (ABC), may be a possible therapeutic target for treating lupus, multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease…
The Lupus Research Alliance is marking Lupus Awareness Month in May with a Breaking through for YOU campaign. “For us, May is more than 31 days of just raising awareness,” Margaret G. Dowd, the alliance’s co-CEO, said in a press release. “It is the time to provide the real…
Galapagos will collaborate with Gilead on a Phase 2 trial evaluating the effectiveness and safety of filgotinib as a treatment for the skin disease cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE). Lupus is an autoimmune disease affecting many systems and organs, which means many symptoms are associated with it. CLE is a skin…
Researchers have devised a blood test that predicts which blood relatives of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) — people who are at high risk of developing the disease — will actually develop it, even seven years before the disease declares itself. The blood test can be used to provide preventive…
Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) was tested in laboratory mice with a systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)-like disease, and was found to lower the animals’ blood pressure, levels of autoantibodies, and the number of specific white blood cells called B-lymphocytes. Patients with SLE often have high blood pressure, which may be caused by…