In conditions with complicated diagnostic processes, like systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), research done using healthcare databases may be affected by tentative diagnoses, a study reports. Using an Estonian database, researchers found that only 60% of people with a diagnostic code for SLE actually had the condition, as confirmed…
B-cells in people with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are distinct from those in healthy people, even at very early stages in B-cell development, a new study shows. The study with that finding, “Epigenetic programming underpins B cell dysfunction in human SLE,” was published in Nature Immunology.
Examining gene expression in hair follicles may be sufficient to diagnose chronic discoid lupus erythematosus (CDLE), a kind of lupus in the scalp, avoiding invasive and expensive scalp biopsies, a study suggests. The study, “Plucked hair follicles from patients with chronic discoid lupus erythematosus show a…
An educational self-management program can benefit African-American women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), improving doctor-patient communication and helping patients manage side effects of their medications, a new study suggests. “Health service utilization among African American women living with systemic lupus erythematosus: perceived impacts of a self-management intervention”…
Machine learning analysis strategies can help predict disease status in people with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a study shows. Still, technical variability inherent to each clinical analysis method can represent a roadblock in this process. Fine-tuning of machine learning algorithms and parameter sets may help reduced technical “noise” caused…
In terms of kidney health, cyclosporine is a more effective long-term maintenance therapy for people with lupus nephritis than either mycophenolate mofetil or azathioprine, new data suggest. Largely, the researchers drew this conclusion because patients using it — even in the presence of high urine protein levels —…
The idea that the female immune system adapts to accommodate pregnancy could explain why biological females are more likely than males to develop lupus and other autoimmune diseases, a study suggests. The study, titled “The Pregnancy Pickle: Evolved Immune Compensation Due to Pregnancy Underlies Sex Differences in…
Treatment with ustekinumab leads to significant reductions in severe flares in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients with active disease, 1-year data from a Phase 2 trial shows. Biomarker analyses of the same data also provided clues about how ustekinumab works in SLE. The data were presented at the…
Certain rare gene mutations, previously ignored, appear to contribute substantially to the development of lupus, new research found, pointing to the potential for targeted therapies for the condition. The study, “Functional rare and low frequency variants in BLK and BANK1 contribute to human lupus,” was published in …
Researchers have identified a previously unknown mechanism by which cells that are infected can signal their neighbors that something is wrong. Understanding how this alarm signal works might lead to new strategies for shutting down harmful immune reactions in diseases like lupus. The study, “Intracellular bacteria engage…