The full house immunofluorescence pattern is the classic histopathologic finding of lupus and lupus nephritis. Glomerular deposits staining for IgG, IgA, IgM, C3 and C1q can help confirm a suspected diagnosis of SLE. But what about patients with negative immunofluorescence and no proliferative or membranous features?

Investigators from the Netherlands have published their findings that smoking is a risk factor in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), led by the induction of local autoimmune responses at mucosal sites (in the lungs) and exemplified by RA-specific autoantibodies. 

Recent reports on small numbers of lupus patients treated with CAR-T cells directed against CD19+ B lymphocytes have generated considerable excitement, not so much because the initial response to this therapy was favorable, but because after follow-up durations of two years or longer the patients were reported to have an ongoing clinical remission without the need for further treatment and in the absence of most autoantibodies. This state has