Testing these hypotheses in a sample of 183 SLE patients with varying disease activity, the investigators found that the measurements obtained by the IST were able to distinguish between patients with active disease and those in remission. In addition, the study found that changes in IST measurements between clinical visits successfully modeled changes in disease activity as measured by the SLE Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI), said Dr. Putterman.
Dr. Putterman also said that combining IST with traditional biomarkers (e.g., CS/C4, anti-DNA) further improved performance of the test.
“Simultaneously measuring antibody responses against thousands of peptides in SLE is feasible and can provide clinically actionable information,” said Dr. Putterman, highlighting that the IST technology has also shown promise in other autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases.
“Future studies of the ImmunoSignature technology in SLE and other rheumatic diseases are intended to provide better diagnostic management tools for the rheumatologist,” he said. Upcoming studies also will look at the potential use of this technology to measure response to therapy and in the prediction of adverse drug effects.
Mary Beth Nierengarten is a freelance medical journalist based in Minneapolis.
References
- Purmalek M, Sakhardande S, Temesgen-Oyelakin Y, et al. Neutrophil subsets, arterial inflammation, and vascular stiffness in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus [abstract 3102]. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2016;68(suppl 10).
- Blazer A, Clancy RM, Belmont HM, et al. Apolipoprotein L1 risk variants associate with prevalent cardiovascular disease in African American systemic lupus erythematous patients [abstract 3103]. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2016;68(suppl 10).
- Putterman C, Rowe M, Legutki JB, et al. A simple test for assessing and monitoring SLE disease activity status [abstract 3106]. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2016;68(suppl 10).
