Abstract
Antibodies against double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) are widely used to diagnose systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and evaluate its activity in patients. This study was undertaken to examine the clinical utility of circulating anti-dsDNA antibody-secreting cells for evaluating SLE patients. Anti-dsDNA antibody-secreting cells quantified using an enzyme-linked immunospot assay were detected in the spleen, bone marrow and peripheral blood from MRL/lpr but not in control BALB/c mice. Circulating anti-dsDNA antibody-secreting cells were detected in 29 (22%) of 130 patients with SLE, but in none of 49 with non-SLE connective-tissue disease or 18 healthy controls. The presence of circulating anti-dsDNA antibody-secreting cells was associated with persistent proteinuria, high SLE disease activity index and systemic lupus activity measures, and a high serum anti-dsDNA antibody titre measured with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The positive predictive value for active disease was 48% for circulating anti-dsDNA antibody-secreting cells versus 17% for serum anti-dsDNA antibodies. A prospective cohort of patients with circulating anti-dsDNA antibodies and inactive SLE showed that the cumulative disease flare-free rate was significantly lower in patients with than without circulating anti-dsDNA antibody-secreting cells (p<0.001). Circulating anti-dsDNA antibody-secreting cells are a useful biomarker for assessing disease activity in SLE patients.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1284-1293 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Lupus |
| Volume | 21 |
| Issue number | 12 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 10-2012 |
| Externally published | Yes |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Rheumatology