MUC5B Promoter Variant Associated with RA with Interstitial Lung Disease

The authors conclude their paper by proposing the MUC5B promoter variant may not only be a risk factor for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and RA with ILD, but may also be a more generalized risk factor for UIP disease.

In an accompanying editorial, Peter K. Gregersen, MD, professor of molecular medicine at the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, N.Y., and Ellen M. Gravallese, MD, professor of medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Mass., discuss whether all patients with RA should be evaluated for MUC5B carrier status given this new data.²

Lara C. Pullen, PhD, is a medical writer based in the Chicago area.

References

1. Juge PA, Lee JS, Ebstein E, et al. MUC5B promoter variant and rheumatoid arthritis with interstitial lung disease. N Engl J Med. 2018 Oct 20. [Epub ahead of print]
2. Gregersen PK, Gravallese EM. Breathing new life into interstitial lung disease in rheumatoid arthritis. N Engl J Med. 2018 Oct 20. [Epub ahead of print]