Zhongyi Liu, Li Shao, Fei Hou, Weiyang Li, Yong-Fei Wang, Hong Feng, Frank Qingyun Wang, Yao Lei, Lichuan Zheng, Rui Liang, Jian Li, Xianghua Guo, Lili Zhang, Yanfang Zhang, Jing Yang, Xiao Qin, Wei Wei, Xingtian Yang, Xiao Dang, Wen Ma, Chun Hing She, Qingsheng Kong, Jing Yang, Bo Ban, Yu Lung Lau, Qin Song, Wanling Yang
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Objectives: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a complex autoimmune disease with varying symptoms and multi-organ damage. Relapse-remission cycles often persist for many patients for years with the current treatment. Improved understanding of molecular changes caused by SLE flare and intensive treatment may result in more targeted therapies.
Methods: RNA sequencing was performed on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from 65 SLE patients in flare, collected both before (SLE1) and after (SLE2) in-hospital treatment, along with 15 healthy controls (HC). Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified among the three groups. Enriched functions and key molecular signatures of the DEGs were analysed and scored to elucidate the transcriptomic changes during treatment.
Results: Few upregulated genes in SLE1 vs HC were affected by treatment (SLE2 vs SLE1), mostly functional in interferon signalling (IFN), plasmablasts and neutrophils. IFN and plasmablast signatures were repressed, but the neutrophil signature remained unchanged or enhanced by treatment. The IFN and neutrophil scores together stratified the SLE samples. IFN scores correlated well with leukopenia, while neutrophil scores reflected relative cell compositions but not cell counts.
Conclusions: In-hospital treatment significantly relieved SLE symptoms with expression changes of a small subset of genes. Notably, IFN signature changes matched SLE flare and improvement, while enhanced neutrophil signature upon treatment suggested the involvement of low-density granulocytes (LDG) in disease development.
期刊介绍:
Rheumatology strives to support research and discovery by publishing the highest quality original scientific papers with a focus on basic, clinical and translational research. The journal’s subject areas cover a wide range of paediatric and adult rheumatological conditions from an international perspective. It is an official journal of the British Society for Rheumatology, published by Oxford University Press.
Rheumatology publishes original articles, reviews, editorials, guidelines, concise reports, meta-analyses, original case reports, clinical vignettes, letters and matters arising from published material. The journal takes pride in serving the global rheumatology community, with a focus on high societal impact in the form of podcasts, videos and extended social media presence, and utilizing metrics such as Altmetric. Keep up to date by following the journal on Twitter @RheumJnl.