Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Hirahara, Shinya
• Katsumata, Yasuhiro
• Kawasumi, Hidenaga
• Kawaguchi, Yashushi
• Harigai, Masayoshi

Titel

Serum levels of soluble programmed cell death protein 1 and soluble programmed cell death protein ligand 2 are increased in systemic lupus erythematosus and associated with the disease activity

Ist Teil von

• Lupus, 2020-06, Vol.29 (7), p.686-696

Ort / Verlag

London, England: SAGE Publications

Erscheinungsjahr

2020

Quelle

MEDLINE

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Objective Programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) pathway plays important roles in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We aimed to elucidate the association of serum soluble PD-1 (sPD-1) and related molecules with SLE and to explore their usefulness as biomarkers. Methods We retrospectively measured the serum levels of sPD-1, soluble PD-ligand 1 (sPD-L1), soluble PD-ligand 2 (sPD-L2) and interleukin (IL)-21 by ELISA in SLE patients, systemic sclerosis patients and healthy controls. Repeat sera samples were also obtained post treatment. Results The serum levels of sPD-1 and sPD-L2 in SLE patients with high disease activity were significantly higher than those in SLE patients with low disease activity, systemic sclerosis patients and healthy controls (n = 58, 15, 20 and 21, respectively; p < 0.001). However, the serum levels of sPD-L1 and IL-21 were not elevated in SLE patients. The serum levels of sPD-1 and sPD-L2 were higher among active SLE patients who tested positive for anti-dsDNA antibodies than in those who tested negative (p = 0.002 and <0.001, respectively). There were moderate correlations between the serum levels of sPD-1 and sPD-L2 and the SLE Disease Activity Index 2000 scores, the titres of anti-dsDNA antibodies and the serum levels of complements. Furthermore, the serum levels of sPD-1 and sPD-L2 decreased significantly in accordance with disease amelioration following treatment (p < 0.001). Conclusion The present study demonstrated the association of serum sPD-1 and sPD-L2 with SLE and suggests their usefulness as disease activity biomarkers for SLE.