Related Articles

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a typical autoimmune disease that's characterized by various autoantibodies to nuclear and cytoplasmic antigens. The presence of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) in serum is generally considered a decisive diagnostic sign of SLE. However, a small subset of SLE patients who had the typical clinical features of SLE was reported to show persistently negative ANA tests. Our report describes a 16-yr-old female who presented with the clinical manifestations of SLE such as malar rash, photosensitivity, arthritis, lymphopenia, pericarditis and proteinuria. The serum autoantibodies were all negative and renal biopsy showed that the histopathological changes of immune complex mediated the focal segmental necrotizing glomerulonephritis with crescent formation. She was treated with monthly pulse cyclophosphamide along with corticosteroids. During the 2-yr follow-up period, the proteinuria was markedly decreased and all of the ANA and anti-double stranded DNA antibody tests were negative. This case suggests that ANA may not be required in the pathogenesis of lupus nephritis.

Introduction

Autoantibodies to RNA helicase A (RHA) were reported as a new serological marker of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) associated with early stage of the disease. Anti-RHA and other autoantibodies in Mexican SLE patients and their correlation with clinical and immunological features were examined.

Methods

Autoantibodies in sera from 62 Mexican SLE patients were tested by immunoprecipitation of 35S-labeled K562 cell extract and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (anti-U1RNP/Sm, ribosomal P, β2GPI, and dsDNA). Anti-RHA was screened based on the immunoprecipitation of the 140-kDa protein, the identity of which was verified by Western blot using rabbit anti-RHA serum. Clinical and immunological characteristics of anti-RHA-positive patients were analyzed.

Results

Anti-RHA was detected in 23% (14/62) of patients, a prevalence higher than that of anti-Sm (13%, 8/62). Prevalence and levels of various autoantibodies were not clearly different between anti-RHA (+) vs. (-) cases, although there was a trend of higher levels of anti-RHA antibodies in patients without anti-U1RNP/Sm (P = 0.07). Both anti-RHA and -Sm were common in cases within one year of diagnosis; however, the prevalence and levels of anti-RHA in patients years after diagnosis did not reduce dramatically, unlike a previous report in American patients. This suggests that the high prevalence of anti-RHA in Mexican patients may be due to relatively stable production of anti-RHA.

Conclusions

Anti-RHA was detected at high prevalence in Mexican SLE patients. Detection of anti-RHA in races in which anti-Sm is not common should be clinically useful. Racial difference in the clinical significance of anti-RHA should be clarified in future studies.

Background

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic, multiorgan, autoimmune disease that affects people of all ages and ethnicities.

Objectives

To explore the relationship between age at disease onset and many of the diverse manifestations of SLE. Additionally, to determine the relationship between age of disease onset and genetic risk in patients with SLE.

Methods

The relationship between the age at disease onset and SLE manifestations were explored in a multiracial cohort of 1317 patients. Patients with SLE were genotyped across 19 confirmed genetic susceptibility loci for SLE. Logistic regression was used to determine the relationships between the number of risk alleles present and age of disease onset.

Results

Childhood-onset SLE had higher odds of proteinuria, malar rash, anti-dsDNA antibody, haemolytic anaemia, arthritis and leucopenia (OR=3.03, 2.13, 2.08, 2.50, 1.89, 1.53, respectively; p values <0.0001, 0.0004, 0.0005, 0.0024, 0.0114, 0.045, respectively). In female subjects, the odds of having cellular casts were 2.18 times higher in childhood-onset than in adult-onset SLE (p=0.0027). With age of onset ≥50, the odds of having proteinuria, cellular casts, anti-nRNP antibody, anti-Sm antibody, anti-dsDNA antibody and seizures were reduced. However, late adult-onset patients with SLE have higher odds of developing photosensitivity than early adult-onset patients. Each SLE-susceptibility risk allele carried within the genome of patients with SLE increased the odds of having a childhood-onset disease in a race-specific manner: by an average of 48% in Gullah and 25% in African-Americans, but this was not significant in Hispanic and European-American lupus patients.

Conclusions

The genetic contribution towards predicting early-onset disease in patients with SLE is quantified for the first time. A more severe SLE phenotype is found in patients with early-onset disease in a large multi-racial cohort, independent of gender, race and disease duration.

Introduction

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a highly heterogeneous disorder, characterized by differences in autoantibody profile, serum cytokines, and clinical manifestations. SLE-associated autoantibodies and high serum interferon alpha (IFN-α) are important heritable phenotypes in SLE which are correlated with each other, and play a role in disease pathogenesis. These two heritable risk factors are shared between ancestral backgrounds. The aim of the study was to detect genetic factors associated with autoantibody profiles and serum IFN-α in SLE.

Methods

We undertook a case-case genome-wide association study of SLE patients stratified by ancestry and extremes of phenotype in serology and serum IFN-α. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in seven loci were selected for follow-up in a large independent cohort of 538 SLE patients and 522 controls using a multi-step screening approach based on novel metrics and expert database review. The seven loci were: leucine-rich repeat containing 20 (LRRC20); protein phosphatase 1 H (PPM1H); lysophosphatidic acid receptor 1 (LPAR1); ankyrin repeat and sterile alpha motif domain 1A (ANKS1A); protein tyrosine phosphatase, receptor type M (PTPRM); ephrin A5 (EFNA5); and V-set and immunoglobulin domain containing 2 (VSIG2).

Results

SNPs in the LRRC20, PPM1H, LPAR1, ANKS1A, and VSIG2 loci each demonstrated strong association with a particular serologic profile (all odds ratios > 2.2 and P < 3.5 × 10-4). Each of these serologic profiles was associated with increased serum IFN-α. SNPs in both PTPRM and LRRC20 were associated with increased serum IFN-α independent of serologic profile (P = 2.2 × 10-6 and P = 2.6 × 10-3 respectively). None of the SNPs were strongly associated with SLE in case-control analysis, suggesting that the major impact of these variants will be upon subphenotypes in SLE.

Conclusions

This study demonstrates the power of using serologic and cytokine subphenotypes to elucidate genetic factors involved in complex autoimmune disease. The distinct associations observed emphasize the heterogeneity of molecular pathogenesis in SLE, and the need for stratification by subphenotypes in genetic studies. We hypothesize that these genetic variants play a role in disease manifestations and severity in SLE.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multi-systemic autoimmune disease leading to immunological aberrations and excessive multiple autoantibody production. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of multiple autoantibodies in SLE patients utilizing the multiplex system method.

We analyzed the presence of elevated titers of anti-Ro, anti-La, anti-RNP, anti-Sm, anti-Jo1, anti-centromere, anti-Scl-70, anti-histone, and anti-dsDNA antibodies in 199 serum samples (113 SLE patients, 86 healthy donors). We compared the type, level and number of autoantibodies and the correlation between the autoantibody profile and disease severity utilizing the SLEDAI score.

Elevated titers of at least one autoantibody were detected in 48% of 42 SLE patients. Elevated titers of anti-Ro antibodies were most commonly detected. The distribution of specific autoantibodies was: anti-Ro- 23.8%, anti-dsDNA- 19%, anti-histone- 19%, anti-RNP- 14.2%, anti-La antibodies- 11.9%, anti-Sm- 7.1%, anti-Scl 70-4.7%, and anti-centromere- 2.4%. Utilizing ROC analysis, the sensitivity and specificity of anti-DNA antibodies at a cutoff value of 34 IU/ml were 87.1% and 79.4% respectively. Elevated titers of anti-Jo1 antibody were not detected. There was a correlation with the titer of anti-Ro antibodies and disease activity by the SLEDAI score. Seven patients harbored one autoantibody only, 15 patients harbored 2-3 autoantibodies, 3 patients harbored 4-5 autoantibodies, and one patient harbored 6 autoantibodies. A correlation between the number of autoantibodies per patient and disease severity was found. One patient with a multitude of autoantibodies had severe lupus and a myriad of clinical manifestations.

In conclusion, the multiplex system is specific and sensitive, provides an autoantibody profile in a single test, and may be useful as a diagnostic test for SLE. Elevated anti-Ro antibodies are associated with severe disease. An autoantibody load may be indicative of more severe disease.

Background

Interferon-alpha (IFN-α) is a primary pathogenic factor in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and high IFN-α levels may be associated with particular clinical manifestations. The prevalence of individual clinical and serologic features differs significantly by ancestry. We used multivariate and network analyses to detect associations between clinical and serologic disease manifestations and serum IFN-α activity in a large diverse SLE cohort.

Methods

1089 SLE patients were studied (387 African-American, 186 Hispanic-American, and 516 European-American). Presence or absence of ACR clinical criteria for SLE, autoantibodies, and serum IFN-α activity data were analyzed in univariate and multivariate models. Iterative multivariate logistic regression was performed in each background separately to establish the network of associations between variables that were independently significant following Bonferroni correction.

Results

In all ancestral backgrounds, high IFN-α activity was associated with anti-Ro and anti-dsDNA antibodies (p-values 4.6×10−18 and 2.9 × 10−16 respectively). Younger age, non-European ancestry, and anti-RNP were also independently associated with increased serum IFN-α activity (p≤6.7×10−4). We found 14 unique associations between variables in network analysis, and only 7 of these associations were shared by more than one ancestral background. Associations between clinical criteria were different in different ancestral backgrounds, while autoantibody-IFN-α relationships were similar across backgrounds. IFN-α activity and autoantibodies were not associated with ACR clinical features in multivariate models.

Conclusions

Serum IFN-α activity was strongly and consistently associated with autoantibodies, and not independently associated with clinical features in SLE. IFN-α may be more relevant to humoral tolerance and initial pathogenesis than later clinical disease manifestations.

Autoantibodies to ribosomal P are found in 15–30% of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients and are highly specific for SLE. The goal of this study is to assess the temporal association of anti-ribosomal P (anti-P) responses with SLE disease onset, as well as to characterize the humoral ribosomal P (ribo P) epitopes targeted in early, pre-diagnostic SLE samples. Patients with stored serial serum samples available prior to SLE diagnosis were identified from a military cohort. Each sample was tested for antibodies against ribo P utilizing standard C-terminus ribo P ELISAs and a solid phase, bead-based assay with affinity-purified ribo P proteins. In this study, antibodies to ribo P were more common in African American SLE patients (p= 0.026), and anti-P positive patients comprised a group with more measured autoantibody specificities than did other SLE patients (3.5 vs. 2.2, p<0.05). Antibodies against ribo P were present on average 1.7 years before SLE diagnosis and were detected an average of 1.08 years earlier in pre-diagnostic SLE samples using affinity-purified whole protein rather than C- terminal peptide alone (p=0.0019). Furthermore, 61% of anti-P positive patients initially had antibodies to aa 99–113, a known ribosomal P0 antigenic target, at a time point when no antibodies to the clinically used C-terminus were detected. Our findings provide evidence that antibodies against ribosomal P frequently develop before clinical SLE diagnosis and are more broadly reactive than previously thought by targeting regions outside of the C-terminus.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a clinically heterogeneous, humoral autoimmune disorder. The unifying feature among SLE patients is the production of large quantities of autoantibodies. Serum samples from 129 patients collected before the onset of SLE and while in the United States military were evaluated for early pre-clinical serologic events. The first available positive serum sample frequently already contained multiple autoantibody specificities (65%). However, in 34 SLE patients the earliest pre-clinical serum sample positive for any detectable common autoantibody bound only a single autoantigen, most commonly 60 kD Ro (29%), nRNP A (24%), anti-phospholipids (18%) or rheumatoid factor (15%). We identified several recurrent patterns of autoantibody onset using these pre-diagnostic samples. In the serum samples available, anti-nRNP A appeared before or simultaneously with anti-nRNP 70 K in 96% of the patients who had both autoantibodies at diagnosis. Anti-60 kD Ro antibodies appeared before or simultaneously with anti-La (98%) or anti-52 kD Ro (95%). The autoantibody response in SLE patients begins simply, often binding a single specific autoantigen years before disease onset, followed by epitope spreading to additional autoantigenic specificities that are accrued in recurring patterns.

Objective

UBE2L3 is associated with susceptibility to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis in European ancestry populations, and this locus has not been investigated fully in non-European populations. We studied the UBE2L3 risk allele for association with SLE, interferon-α (IFN-α), and autoantibodies in a predominantly African American SLE cohort.

Methods

We studied 395 patients with SLE and 344 controls. The UBE2L3 rs5754217 polymorphism was genotyped using Taqman primer-probe sets, and IFN-α was measured using a reporter cell assay.

Results

The UBE2L3 rs5754217 T allele was strongly enriched in African American patients with anti-La antibodies as compared to controls, and a recessive model was the best fit for this association (OR 2.55, p = 0.0061). Serum IFN-α also demonstrated a recessive association with the rs5754217 genotype in African American patients, and the TT/anti-La-positive patients formed a significantly high IFN-α subgroup (p = 0.0040). Similar nonstatistically significant patterns of association were observed in the European American patients with SLE. Case-control analysis did not show large allele frequency differences, supporting the idea that this allele is most strongly associated with anti-La-positive patients.

Conclusion

This pattern of recessive influence within a subgroup of patients may explain why this allele does not produce a strong signal in standard case-control studies, and subphenotypes should be included in future studies of UBE2L3. The interaction we observed between UBE2L3 genotype and autoantibodies upon serum IFN-α suggests a biological role for this locus in patients with SLE in vivo.

Introduction

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is characterized by frequent neuropsychiatric involvement, which includes cognitive impairment (CI). We aimed at assessing CI in a cohort of Italian SLE patients by using a wide range of neurocognitive tests specifically designed to evaluate the fronto-subcortical dysfunction. Furthermore, we aimed at testing whether CI in SLE is associated with serum autoantibodies, disease activity and chronic damage.

Methods

Fifty-eight consecutive patients were enrolled. Study protocol included data collection, evaluation of serum levels of ANA, anti-dsDNA, anti-cardiolipin, anti-β2-glycoprotein I, anti-P ribosomal, anti-endothelial cell, and anti-Nedd5 antibodies. SLEDAI-2000 and SLICC were used to assess disease activity and chronic damage. Patients were administered a test battery specifically designed to detect fronto-subcortical dysfunction across five domains: memory, attention, abstract reasoning, executive function and visuospatial function. For each patient, the raw scores from each test were compared with published norms, then transformed into Z scores (deviation from normal mean), and finally summed in the Global Cognitive Dysfunction score (GCDs).

Results

Nineteen percent of patients had mild GCDs impairment (GCDs 2–3), 7% moderate (GCDs 4–5) and 5% severe (GCDs≥6). The visuospatial domain was the most compromised (MDZs = −0.89±1.23). Anti-cardiolipin IgM levels were associated with visuospatial domain impairment (r = 0.331, P = 0.005). SLEDAI correlated with GCDs, and attentional and executive domains; SLICC correlated with GCDs, and with visuospatial and attentional domains impairment.

Conclusions

Anti-phospholipids, disease activity, and chronic damage are associated with cognitive dysfunction in SLE. The use of a wide spectrum of tests allowed for a better selection of the relevant factors involved in SLE cognitive dysfunction, and standardized neuropsychological testing methods should be used for routine assessment of SLE patients.

HLA-DR antigens and autoantibodies to the nuclear or cytoplasmic antigens Ro/SSA, La/SSB, Sm, and RNP were determined in North American and Austrian patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Analysis of the association of antibodies to these ribonucleic acid (RNA)-protein antigens with HLA-DR antigens showed that HLA-DR3 was related to the presence of anti-Ro/SSA or anti-La/SSB, or both. In contrast, anti-Sm or anti-RNP, or both were associated with HLA-DR4. HLA-DR5 was associated with absence of these autoantibodies. The data extend evidence for the complexity and heterogeneity of SLE. Moreover, they indicate that, in SLE, genes linked to those coding for HLA-DR antigens, are related to the specificity of autoantibody responses rather than to the primary immunological abnormalities of this disorder.

Although sunlight is known to induce skin lesions in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and to exacerbate systemic manifestations, the underlying mechanisms remain obscure. We report experiments that show enhanced binding of IgG autoantibodies to the cell surface membrane of ultraviolet-B (UVB) irradiated (200-1,600 J/m2) cultured SLE keratinocytes in 10 out of 12 such cell strains. The autoantibody probes showing increased binding were directed against the soluble intracellular antigens, Sm, RNP, SSA/Ro, SSB/La, whereas serum with anti-dsDNA activity did not demonstrate such binding. Control keratinocytes from several sources shared low level binding of autoantibodies after ultraviolet light exposure. In addition, 4/6 UVB-sensitive SLE strains showed increased autoantibody binding to the surface of SLE keratinocytes after UVA exposure (50-150 kJ/m2), but of lower magnitude. When UVB-sensitive nonirradiated SLE strains were exposed to autologous serum, 3/8 sera demonstrated a striking increase in IgG binding, which increased further after UVB exposure. Enhanced expression of saline-soluble intracellular antigens on the cell surface membrane of patient, but not control, keratinocytes may, in part, explain the photosensitivity of patients with SLE.

Images

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a clinically heterogeneous, systemic autoimmune disease characterized by autoantibody formation. Previously published genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have investigated SLE as a single phenotype. Therefore, we conducted a GWAS to identify genetic factors associated with anti–dsDNA autoantibody production, a SLE–related autoantibody with diagnostic and clinical importance. Using two independent datasets, over 400,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were studied in a total of 1,717 SLE cases and 4,813 healthy controls. Anti–dsDNA autoantibody positive (anti–dsDNA +, n = 811) and anti–dsDNA autoantibody negative (anti–dsDNA –, n = 906) SLE cases were compared to healthy controls and to each other to identify SNPs associated specifically with these SLE subtypes. SNPs in the previously identified SLE susceptibility loci STAT4, IRF5, ITGAM, and the major histocompatibility complex were strongly associated with anti–dsDNA + SLE. Far fewer and weaker associations were observed for anti–dsDNA – SLE. For example, rs7574865 in STAT4 had an OR for anti–dsDNA + SLE of 1.77 (95% CI 1.57–1.99, p = 2.0E-20) compared to an OR for anti–dsDNA – SLE of 1.26 (95% CI 1.12–1.41, p = 2.4E-04), with pheterogeneity<0.0005. SNPs in the SLE susceptibility loci BANK1, KIAA1542, and UBE2L3 showed evidence of association with anti–dsDNA + SLE and were not associated with anti–dsDNA – SLE. In conclusion, we identified differential genetic associations with SLE based on anti–dsDNA autoantibody production. Many previously identified SLE susceptibility loci may confer disease risk through their role in autoantibody production and be more accurately described as autoantibody propensity loci. Lack of strong SNP associations may suggest that other types of genetic variation or non-genetic factors such as environmental exposures have a greater impact on susceptibility to anti–dsDNA – SLE.

Author Summary

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disease that can involve virtually any organ system. SLE patients produce antibodies that bind to their own cells and proteins (autoantibodies) which can cause irreversible organ damage. One particular SLE–related autoantibody directed at double-stranded DNA (anti–dsDNA) is associated with kidney involvement and more severe disease. Previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in SLE have studied SLE itself, not particular SLE manifestations. Therefore, we conducted this GWAS of anti–dsDNA autoantibody production to identify genetic associations with this clinically important autoantibody. We found that many previously identified SLE–associated genes are more strongly associated with anti–dsDNA autoantibody production than SLE itself, and they may be more accurately described as autoantibody propensity genes. No strong genetic associations were observed for SLE patients who do not produce anti–dsDNA autoantibodies, suggesting that other factors may have more influence in developing this type of SLE. Further investigation of these autoantibody propensity genes may lead to greater insight into the causes of autoantibody production and organ damage in SLE.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multiorgan autoimmune disease of unknown etiology with many clinical manifestations. The skin is one of the target organs most variably affected by the disease. The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) established 11 criteria as a classificatory instrument to operationalise the definition of SLE in clinical trials. They were not intended to be used to diagnose individuals and do not do well in that capacity. Cutaneous lesions account for four of these 11 revised criteria of SLE. Skin lesions in patients with lupus may be specific or nonspecific. This paper covers the SLE-specific cutaneous changes: malar rash, discoid rash, photosensitivity, and oral mucosal lesions as well as SLE nonspecific skin manifestations, their pathophysiology, and management. A deeper thorough understanding of the cutaneous manifestations of SLE is essential for diagnosis, prognosis, and efficient management. Thus, dermatologists should cooperate with other specialties to provide optimal care of SLE patient.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a clinically and serologically complex disease that demonstrates clinical, epidemiological and genetic differences among racial and ethnic groups. Some autoantibodies are useful for diagnosis of the illness. Others are clinically important because of associations with a particular manifestation of SLE. Antibodies to RNA helicase A (anti-RHA) comprise a newly described class of SLE autoantibodies. These antibodies have so far been found only in SLE patients and differ substantially in prevalence and nature between Mexican and white American SLE patients. Study of anti-RHA may provide insights into the origin of population differences in SLE.

The PIK3C3 locus was implicated in case-case genome-wide association study of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) which we had performed to detect genes associated with autoantibodies and serum interferon-alpha (IFN-α). Herein, we examine a PIK3C3 promoter variant (rs3813065/-442 C/T) in an independent multiancestral cohort of 478 SLE cases and 522 controls. rs3813065 C was strongly associated with the simultaneous presence of both anti-Ro and anti-Sm antibodies in African-American patients [OR = 2.24 (1.34–3.73), P = 2.0 × 10−3]. This autoantibody profile was associated with higher serum IFN-α (P = 7.6 × 10−6). In the HapMap Yoruba population, rs3813065 was associated with differential expression of ERAP2 (P = 2.0 × 10−5), which encodes an enzyme involved in MHC class I peptide processing. Thus, rs3813065 C is associated with a particular autoantibody profile and altered expression of an MHC peptide processing enzyme, suggesting that this variant modulates serologic autoimmunity in African-American SLE patients.

This study investigated the overall clinical impact of anti-α-actinin antibodies in patients with pre-selected autoimmune diseases and in a random group of anti-nuclear antibody (ANA)-positive individuals. The relation of anti-α-actinin antibodies with lupus nephritis and anti-double-stranded DNA (anti-dsDNA) antibodies represented a particular focus for the study. Using a cross-sectional design, the presence of antibodies to α-actinin was studied in selected groups, classified according to the relevant American College of Rheumatology classification criteria for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) (n = 99), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) (n = 68), Wegener's granulomatosis (WG) (n = 85), and fibromyalgia (FM) (n = 29), and in a random group of ANA-positive individuals (n = 142). Renal disease was defined as (increased) proteinuria with haematuria or presence of cellular casts. Sera from SLE, RA, and Sjøgren's syndrome (SS) patients had significantly higher levels of anti-α-actinin antibodies than the other patient groups. Using the geometric mean (± 2 standard deviations) in FM patients as the upper cutoff, 20% of SLE patients, 12% of RA patients, 4% of SS patients, and none of the WG patients were positive for anti-α-actinin antibodies. Within the SLE cohort, anti-α-actinin antibody levels were higher in patients with renal flares (p = 0.02) and correlated independently with anti-dsDNA antibody levels by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (p < 0.007) but not with other disease features. In the random ANA group, 14 individuals had anti-α-actinin antibodies. Of these, 36% had SLE, while 64% suffered from other, mostly autoimmune, disorders. Antibodies binding to α-actinin were detected in 20% of SLE patients but were not specific for SLE. They correlate with anti-dsDNA antibody levels, implying in vitro cross-reactivity of anti-dsDNA antibodies, which may explain the observed association with renal disease in SLE.

To investigate the autoantibody repertoire associated with SLE, we have created phage display IgG Fab libraries from two clinically active SLE patients and from the healthy identical twin of one of these patients. The libraries from the lupus discordant twins were found to both include unusually large representations of the V(H)5 gene family. By panning with DNA, the SLE libraries each yielded IgG anti-double-stranded (ds) DNA autoantibodies, which are characteristic of lupus disease. These included a V(H)5 autoantibody from the affected twin, that has a targeted cluster of mutations that potentially improves binding affinity. The recovered IgG anti-dsDNA autoantibodies expressed the same idiotypes associated with the in vivo IgG anti-dsDNA response of the respective SLE donor. Heavy-light chain shuffling experiments demonstrated a case in which the in vitro creation of anti-dsDNA binding activity required restrictive pairing of a heavy chain with Vlambda light chains similar to those in circulating anti-dsDNA autoantibodies. By contrast, IgG anti-ds autoantibodies could not be recovered from the library from the healthy twin, or from shuffled libraries with heavy chains from the healthy twin. These repertoire analyses illustrate how inheritance and somatic processes interplay to produce lupus-associated IgG autoantibodies.

The pattern of inheritance of autoantibodies in eight families chosen from a pool of 110 families of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is described. In all the eight families at least two members were already affected by SLE. In total, 19 patients and 43 first degree relatives were examined. The inheritance of a large set of antinuclear antibodies (for example, DNA, Sm, RNP, Ro, La, histones) and 16/6 idiotype seemed to be related to some unknown genetic factors but not related to HLA. The presence of numerous antinuclear autoantibodies in the serum of a subject was not necessarily associated with overt disease. The incidence of the 16/6 idiotype among patients and their relatives was low. It is not yet clear whether the 'autoantibody burden' is greater in families with multiple cases of SLE than in families with single cases.

Objective

The type I interferon (IFN) pathway is activated in many patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and high serum levels of IFN are associated with anti-SSA/Ro autoantibodies. To investigate the clinical features associated with type I IFN production in vivo, we compared serum IFN activity in individuals with anti-SSA/Ro antibodies who were asymptomatic with that in individuals with clinical manifestations of SLE or Sjögren's syndrome (SS).

Methods

Antibody-positive sera from 84 mothers of children with manifestations of neonatal lupus were studied for type I IFN activity, using a functional reporter cell assay. Maternal health status was characterized as asymptomatic, SS, SLE, pauci-SLE, or pauci-SS, based on a screening questionnaire, telephone interview, and review of medical records. The prefix “pauci-” indicates symptoms insufficient for a formal classification of the disease.

Results

Only 4% of asymptomatic mothers had high serum type I IFN activity, compared with 73% with pauci-SLE (P = 5.7 × 10−5), 35% with SLE (P = 0.011), and 32% of patients with SS (P = 0.032). One of the 4 patients with pauci-SS had high levels of IFN. The majority of patients for whom longitudinal data were available had stable type I IFN activity over time, and changes in IFN activity were not clearly accompanied by changes in the clinical diagnosis.

Conclusion

Patients with SLE, patients with pauci-SLE, and patients with SS are more likely to have high serum IFN activity than asymptomatic individuals with SSA/Ro autoantibodies, suggesting that these autoantibodies are insufficient for activation of the type I IFN pathway, and that disease-specific factors are important for type I IFN generation in vivo.

Introduction

The presence of anti-topoisomerase I (topo I) antibodies is a classic scleroderma (SSc) marker presumably associated with a unique clinical subset. Here the clinical association of anti-topo I was reevaluated in unselected patients seen in a rheumatology clinic setting.

Methods

Sera from the initial visit in a cohort of unselected rheumatology clinic patients (n = 1,966, including 434 systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), 119 SSc, 85 polymyositis/dermatomyositis (PM/DM)) were screened by radioimmunoprecipitation. Anti-topo I-positive sera were also tested with immunofluorescence and RNA immunoprecipitation.

Results

Twenty-five (15 Caucasian, eight African American, two Latin) anti-topo I positive patients were identified, and all except one met the ACR SSc criteria. Coexistence of other SSc autoantibodies was not observed, except for anti-U1RNP in six cases. When anti-topo I alone versus anti-topo I + U1RNP groups were compared, African American (21% vs. 67%), overlap with SLE (0 vs. 50%; P = 0.009) or PM/DM (0 vs. 33%; P = 0.05) or elevated creatine phosphokinase (CPK) (P = 0.07) were more common in the latter group. In comparison of anti-topo I-positive Caucasians versus African Americans, the latter more frequently had anti-U1RNP (13% vs. 50%), mild/no skin changes (14% vs. 63%; P = 0.03) and overlap with SLE (0 vs. 38%; P = 0.03) and PM/DM (0 vs. 25%; P = 0.05).

Conclusions

Anti-topo I detected by immunoprecipitation in unselected rheumatology patients is highly specific for SSc. Anti-topo I coexisting with anti-U1RNP in African American patients is associated with a subset of SLE overlapping with SSc and PM/DM but without apparent sclerodermatous changes.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multisystem disease characterized by B cells producing autoantibodies against nuclear proteins and DNA, especially anti-double-strand DNA (dsDNA) antibodies. RP105 (CD180), the toll-like receptor- (TLR-) associated molecule, is expressed on normal B cells. However, RP105-negative B cells increase in peripheral blood from patients with active SLE. RP105 may regulate B-cell activation, and RP105-negative B cells produce autoantibodies and take part in pathophysiology of SLE. It is possible that targeting RP105-negative B cells is one of the treatments of SLE. In this paper, we discuss the RP105 biology and clinical significance in SLE.

Objective

C-reactive protein (CRP) may play an anti-inflammatory role during the acute phase of inflammation, and is also used as a marker of inflammation associated with cardiovascular disease. In the present study, we investigated the association between high-sensitivity CRP (hsCRP) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) manifestations, autoantibodies, and organ damage.

Methods

In this cross-sectional study, 610 SLE patients from a prospective cohort had more than one hsCRP measurement. Organ damage was assessed using the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics (SLICC)/American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Damage Index. Multiple linear regression models were used to adjust for age, gender, ethnicity, disease duration, body mass index, education, disease activity, current prednisone dose, statin use, and estrogen use.

Results

After adjusting for confounders, hsCRP was associated with myocarditis, cardiac murmur, interstitial pulmonary fibrosis, pulmonary hypertension, gastrointestinal lupus manifestations, and anemia. Anti-dsDNA antibodies and lupus anticoagulant were associated with hsCRP in unadjusted models, and these associations remained significant after adjustment for confounders. hsCRP levels were significantly higher in patients with pulmonary, musculoskeletal, and endocrine damage, and a total SLICC Damage Index score ≥1. After adjustment, hsCRP was associated with pulmonary, musculoskeletal, and total damage, but no longer with endocrine damage.

Conclusions

hsCRP is associated with a broad range of clinical features and organ damage in SLE, particularly in the pulmonary and musculoskeletal systems. This association holds true independent of sociodemographic, disease activity, and treatment factors, and may be useful to identify high-risk SLE patients who would benefit from additional screening and surveillance studies.

Objective

Interferon-α (IFNα) is a heritable risk factor for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Genetic variation near IRF7 is implicated in SLE susceptibility. SLE-associated autoantibodies can stimulate IFNα production through the Toll-like receptor/IRF7 pathway. This study was undertaken to determine whether variants of IRF7 act as risk factors for SLE by increasing IFNα production and whether autoantibodies are important to this phenomenon.

Methods

We studied 492 patients with SLE (236 African American, 162 European American, and 94 Hispanic American subjects). Serum levels of IFNα were measured using a reporter cell assay, and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the IRF7/PHRF1 locus were genotyped.

Results

In a joint analysis of European American and Hispanic American subjects, the rs702966 C allele was associated with the presence of anti–double-stranded DNA (anti-dsDNA) antibodies (odds ratio [OR] 1.83, P = 0.0069). The rs702966 CC genotype was only associated with higher serum levels of IFNα in European American and Hispanic American patients with anti-dsDNA antibodies (joint analysis P = 4.1 × 10−5 in anti-dsDNA–positive patients and P = 0.99 in anti-dsDNA–negative patients). In African American subjects, anti-Sm antibodies were associated with the rs4963128 SNP near IRF7 (OR 1.95, P = 0.0017). The rs4963128 CT and TT genotypes were associated with higher serum levels of IFNα only in African American patients with anti-Sm antibodies (P = 0.0012). In African American patients lacking anti-Sm antibodies, an effect of anti-dsDNA–rs702966 C allele interaction on serum levels of IFNα was observed, similar to the other patient groups (overall joint analysis P = 1.0 × 10−6). In European American and Hispanic American patients, the IRF5 SLE risk haplotype showed an additive effect with the rs702966 C allele on IFNα level in anti-dsDNA–positive patients.

Conclusion

Our findings indicate that IRF7/PHRF1 variants in combination with SLE-associated autoantibodies result in higher serum levels of IFNα, providing a biologic relevance for this locus at the protein level in human SLE in vivo.

Background & objectives:

Receptors for the Fc fragment of immunoglobulin G (Fc γ Rs) represent the link between humoral and cellular immune responses. Polymorphisms in Fc γ Rs have been identified as genetic factors influencing susceptibility to various autoimmune diseases. This study was aimed to identify Fc γ R IIB genotypes in Indian systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients and to correlate these with clinical presentation and autoantibody profile.

Methods:

Eighty consecutive clinically diagnosed SLE patients were included. SLE patients were classified according to the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria. Disease activity was assessed by Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI). PCR-RFLP method was used to detect Fc γ R IIB polymorphism.

Results:

Of the 80 SLE patients, 53 were LN and 27 were SLE without nephritis. The mean SLEDAI score at evaluation was 6.5 ± 5.8. Among SLE patients Fc γ R IIB genotype frequency was 61.2 per cent for Ile/Thr, 20.0 per cent for Thr/Thr and 18.8 per cent for Ile/Ile as compared to 65, 12.5 and 22.5 per cent respectively among normal population. There was no significant difference for Fc γ R IIB genotypes between SLE and normals. The allele frequency for Thr allele in SLE patients was slightly higher (0.51) than in normals (0.45). Thr allele frequency in LN patients was slightly higher (0.53) than in SLE patients without nephritis (0.49). Though a higher percentages of symptoms like renal manifestations (81.3%), arthritis (62.5%) and oral ulcer (56.3%) were noted in patients with Thr/Thr genotypes, no significant difference was noted when these patients were compared with Ile/Ile and Ile/Thr genotypes.

Interpretation & conclusions:

The findings of this study indicate towards an involvement of Thr allele with SLE disease severity and clinical presentation in Indian SLE patients. Future study on a large sample is needed to support this finding to understand the association of Fc γ R IIB 232Thr/Thr genotype as a susceptibility factor in SLE.