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Vagal Stimulation Improves Cytokine Production and Rheumatoid Disease Activity
PNAS has published a study wherein an inducible “inflammatory reflex” delivered by vagus nerve stimulation was shown to inhibit the production of tumor necrosis factor (TNF), an inflammatory molecule that is a major therapeutic target in an animal model of rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
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Lupus Patients Genomically Stratified to Explain Treatment Responses
Systemic lupus is a clinically heterogeneous disorder, unified by requisite clinical features and exuberant humoral response to unknown triggers. While the diagnosis is easy, the disease course and management can be complicated and challenging.
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Angiogenic Biomarkers Predict Adverse Outcomes Pregnancies in Lupus
The PROMISSE (Predictors of Pregnancy Outcome: Biomarkers in Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus) study has revealed several important lessons in lupus care.
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Sclerostin Inhibition May Worsen Rheumatoid Arthritis
Sclerostin, an inhibitor of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, negatively regulates osteoblast differentiation and has anti-anabolic effects on bone formation. Thus, inhibition of sclerostin is currently being studied as therapy for postmenopausal osteoporosis.
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AS Diagnosis Linked to CVD Risk
Prevalent patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) face a 30–50% increased risk of acute coronary, cerebrovascular, and thromboembolic events compared with the general population.
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Hypogonadism Ups the Risk of Autoimmunity
In a variety of models, testosterone has been shown to be immunosuppressive and deficiency of testosterone has been linked with autoimmune disease and increases in C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor, and interleukin-6 (IL-6).
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Dramatic Results for Interferon Blocker in SLE
Blocking the type 1 interferon receptor with the monoclonal antibody anifrolumab shows promise as a treatment for moderate-to-severe systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), according to a phase IIb study presented here.
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Pre-Clinical Use of Rituximab Forestalls Rheumatoid Onset
The results of the PRAIRI study were presented today at EULAR 2016 in London. These early findings suggest that individuals "at-risk" to develop rheumatoid arthritis (RA) may benefit from a short course of intravenously rituximab therapy.
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Mosquito Arthritis
In the last two years there have been increasing reports of mosquito-borne infectious arthritides. Dengue fever was best known until the introduction of viral infections due to chikungunya and Zika.
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GWAS Reveals Shared Susceptibility Locus Between RA and SLE
While the phenotypes of RA and SLE are quite different, genome-wide association studies (GWAS) performed in the past have shown a genetic overlap between both.
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Netrin-1 May Promote Lung Fibrosis in Scleroderma
Mechanisms underlying the pulmonary fibrosis of systemic sclerosis are poorly understood, yet are the focus of both research and new drug development.
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RheumNow Week in Review – 22 April 2016
Watch Dr. Jack Cush cover ten highlights from this week on RheumNow.com.
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Vaccine Success is Limited in Rheumatoid Arthritis
Numerous guidelines (ACR, ACIP/CDC, ATS, NICE) all call for timely vaccinations in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and those receiving immunosuppressives or biologics.
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α Defensin Control of Inflammation
Alpha defensins are released following apoptosis, necrosis, or netosis of human neutrophils. They are taken up by other cells and microbes, wherein they permeablize membranes and kill microbes and host cells. Thus, they augment the antimicrobial capacity of macrophages and at the same time inhibit the biosynthesis of proinflammatory cytokines.
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HLA-B*5801 Testing Needed in Asians and Blacks with Gout
Choi and colleagues analyzed US hospitalizations (2009–2013) to assess the frequency and racial distribution of patients hospitalized with Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS) and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN) related to the use of urate-lowering (ULT) therapy (predominantly allopurinol).
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Lupus Patients Genomically Stratified to Explain Treatment Responses
Systemic lupus is a clinically heterogeneous disorder, unified by requisite clinical features and exuberant humoral response to unknown triggers. While the diagnosis is easy, the disease course and management can be complicated and challenging.
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Could Rheumatoid Synovium Be a Nursery for ACPA Producing Plasma Cells ?
One of the hallmarks of aggressive rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is presence of antibodies against citrullinated protein antigens (ACPA).
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Altering the Microbiome May Benefit Lupus Patients
Lopez and colleagues from Spain have studied the gut microbiome of l
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Sclerostin Inhibition May Worsen Rheumatoid Arthritis
Sclerostin, an inhibitor of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, negatively regulates osteoblast differentiation and has anti-anabolic effects on bone formation. Thus, inhibition of sclerostin is currently being studied as therapy for postmenopausal osteoporosis.
Read Article
IL-6 Inhibition Makes News
Several new interleukin-6 inhibitors made headlines this week. While none of the new IL-6 inhibitors are soon to be approved and available, these studies may redefine the role of other non-TNF biologics in the future.
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