Urinary biomarkers for lupus nephritis: a systems biology approach

Omer, Mohamed H. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5967-9984, Shafqat, Areez, Ahmad, Omar, Nadri, Juzer, AlKattan, Khaled and Yaqinuddin, Ahmed 2024. Urinary biomarkers for lupus nephritis: a systems biology approach. Journal of Clinical Medicine 13 (8) , 2339. 10.3390/jcm13082339

PDF - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution. Download (4MB)

Abstract

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the prototypical systemic autoimmune disorder. Kidney involvement, termed lupus nephritis (LN), is seen in 40–60% of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). After the diagnosis, serial measurement of proteinuria is the most common method of monitoring treatment response and progression. However, present treatments for LN—corticosteroids and immunosuppressants—target inflammation, not proteinuria. Furthermore, subclinical renal inflammation can persist despite improving proteinuria. Serial kidney biopsies—the gold standard for disease monitoring—are also not feasible due to their inherent risk of complications. Biomarkers that reflect the underlying renal inflammatory process and better predict LN progression and treatment response are urgently needed. Urinary biomarkers are particularly relevant as they can be measured non-invasively and may better reflect the compartmentalized renal response in LN, unlike serum studies that are non-specific to the kidney. The past decade has overseen a boom in applying cutting-edge technologies to dissect the pathogenesis of diseases at the molecular and cellular levels. Using these technologies in LN is beginning to reveal novel disease biomarkers and therapeutic targets for LN, potentially improving patient outcomes if successfully translated to clinical practice.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Medicine
Additional Information:	License information from Publisher: LICENSE 1: URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/, Type: open-access
Publisher:	MDPI
ISSN:	2077-0383
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	8 May 2024
Date of Acceptance:	13 April 2024
Last Modified:	08 May 2024 09:20
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/168759

Actions (repository staff only)

Edit Item