Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0409974 (lupus)
 22,386 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

We have previously suggested that the recognition of a cross-reactive epitope on the 5-HT4 receptor and the 52-kDa SSA/Ro protein by serotonin-antagonizing autoantibodies could explain the electrophysiological symptoms of congenital heart block in neonatal lupus. To confirm this hypothesis, we immunized female mice with four synthetic peptides corresponding to the recognized epitopes. All mice developed anti-peptide antibodies, which cross-reacted with the Ro52 and 5-HT4 receptor peptides and recognized both cognate proteins. Peptide-immune mice were mated. The pups from mice immunized with the Ro52 peptides had no symptoms of neonatal lupus apart from bradycardia. However, pups from mice immunized with the 5-HT4 receptor peptides and bradycardia, atrioventricular block of type I or II, longer QT intervals, skin rashes and neuromotor problems. The 5-HT4 receptor was detectable in the different fetal tissues affected (heart, skin and brain) by immunohistochemistry. Hearts from diseased pups were less developed and showed disorganized myocardial hyperplasia, compared to the normal littermates. These results demonstrate that the serotoninergic 5-HT4 receptor is the antigenic target of physiopathological autoantibodies in neonatal lupus.
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PMID:Induction of neonatal lupus in pups of mice immunized with synthetic peptides derived from amino acid sequences of the serotoninergic 5-HT4 receptor. 1118 Jan 22

Because of the variable responsiveness of thromboplastins to lupus anticoagulants (LA), concerns have been raised about the validity of the prothrombin time-International Normalized Ratio (PT-INR) in monitoring oral anticoagulant treatment in patients with the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) and LA. To date, few studies have been performed, numbers of patients investigated are relatively small and results are conflicting. We report on a multicentre study organized to investigate further this clinically relevant issue. Each of nine thrombosis centres was asked to collect plasma samples from patients with APS who were on oral anticoagulants (cases) and patients without APS who were on oral anticoagulants (controls). Nine thromboplastins (three human recombinant, one from human placenta and five from rabbit brain) were calibrated at the co-ordinating centre according to World Health Organization guidelines. Measurements of the INR and factor X amidolytic activity for all frozen plasmas were performed centrally. The numbers of patients investigated were 58 cases and 57 controls. Between-reagent variability of the INR was higher in cases [coefficient of variation (CV) = 12.4%] than in controls (CV = 6.7%), but this was because of one of the thromboplastins only (Thromborel R, human recombinant), which measured considerably higher INR values than the others in cases but not in controls. In conclusion, our data indicate that LA interference on the PT-INR measured with the majority of commercial thromboplastins is not enough to cause concern if insensitive thromboplastins, properly calibrated to assign them an instrument-specific International Sensitivity Index are used. New thromboplastins, especially those made of relipidated tissue factor, should be checked for their responsiveness to LA before they are used to monitor oral anticoagulant treatment in patients with APS.
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PMID:Laboratory control of oral anticoagulant treatment by the INR system in patients with the antiphospholipid syndrome and lupus anticoagulant. Results of a collaborative study involving nine commercial thromboplastins. 1173 53

Sixty SLE patients with only primary neuropsychiatric manifestations (NP-SLE), (54 female and six male; mean age 44.5) were compared consecutively. Forty-six of the patients (78.3%) were presented with a combination of neuropsychiatric symptoms. Except for the standard immunoserological test, all patients underwent clinical, neurological and psychiatric examination, electrophysiological tests [EEG (electro-encephalography involves recording and analysis of electrical signals generated by the brain), EP (the evoked potentials method involves analysis of a series of electrical signals generated in parts of the nervous system following stimulation of sense organs and peripheral nerves) and EMNG (electro-myo-neography is a method of measurement of electrical activity arising from muscle fibers and peripheral nerves)]. This method presents a valuable tool for assessment of functional state of peripheral nervous systems and muscles)), and neuroimaging (MRI of the brain). Thirty-seven out of 60 patients with NP-SLE (group I) were treated with a low dose of i.v. cyclophosphamide (200-400 mg per month). The average daily oral dose of prednisone in these patients was 20.5 mg. Group II consisted of 23 patients treated with pridnisone (mean dose 20.5 per day) only or with antimalarials. Patients in the first group showed a considerable clinical and electrophysiological improvement of cerebral function, while there was only a slight or no improvement in the second group. The difference between groups was statistically significant.
Lupus 2003
PMID:Neuropsychiatric lupus favourable response to low dose i.v. cyclophosphamide and prednisolone (pilot study). 1258 18