scholarly journals Gene-Expression-Guided Selection of Candidate Loci and Molecular Phenotype Analyses Enhance Genetic Discovery in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yelena Koldobskaya ◽  
Kichul Ko ◽  
Akaash A. Kumar ◽  
Sandra Agik ◽  
Jasmine Arrington ◽  
...  

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a highly heterogeneous autoimmune disorder characterized by differences in autoantibody profiles, serum cytokines, and clinical manifestations. We have previously conducted a case-case genome-wide association study (GWAS) of SLE patients to detect associations with autoantibody profile and serum interferon alpha (IFN-α). In this study, we used public gene expression data sets to rationally select additional single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for validation. The top 200 GWAS SNPs were searched in a database which compares genome-wide expression data to genome-wide SNP genotype data in HapMap cell lines. SNPs were chosen for validation if they were associated with differential expression of 15 or more genes at a significance ofP<9×10−5. This resulted in 11 SNPs which were genotyped in 453 SLE patients and 418 matched controls. Three SNPs were associated with SLE-associated autoantibodies, and one of these SNPs was also associated with serum IFN-α(P<4.5×10−3for all). One additional SNP was associated exclusively with serum IFN-α. Case-control analysis was insensitive to these molecular subphenotype associations. This study illustrates the use of gene expression data to rationally select candidate loci in autoimmune disease, and the utility of stratification by molecular phenotypes in the discovery of additional genetic associations in SLE.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vasilis F. Ntasis ◽  
Nikolaos I. Panousis ◽  
Maria G. Tektonidou ◽  
Emmanouil T. Dermitzakis ◽  
Dimitrios T. Boumpas ◽  
...  

AbstractSystemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is the prototype of autoimmune diseases, characterized by extensive gene expression perturbations in peripheral blood immune cells. Circumstantial evidence suggests that these perturbations may be due to altered epigenetic profiles and chromatin accessibility but the relationship between transcriptional deregulation and genome organization remains largely unstudied. We developed a genomic approach that leverages patterns of gene coexpression from genome-wide transcriptome profiles in order to identify statistically robust Domains of Co-ordinated gene Expression (DCEs). By implementing this method on gene expression data from a large SLE patient cohort, we identify significant disease-associated alterations in gene co-regulation patterns, which also correlate with the SLE activity status. Low disease activity patient genomes are characterized by extensive fragmentation leading to DCEs of smaller size. High disease activity genomes display excessive spatial redistribution of co-expression domains with expanded and newly-appearing (emerged) DCEs. Fragmentation and redistribution of gene coexpression patterns correlate with SLE-implicated biological pathways and clinically relevant endophenotypes such as kidney involvement. Notably, genes lying at the boundaries of split DCEs of low activity genomes are enriched in the interferon and other SLE susceptibility signatures, suggesting the implication of DCE fragmentation at early disease stages. Interrogation of promoter-enhancer interactions from various immune cell subtypes shows that a significant percentage of nested connections are disrupted by a DCE split or depletion in SLE genomes. Collectively, our results underlining an important role for genome organization in shaping gene expression in SLE, could provide valuable insights into disease pathogenesis and the mechanisms underlying disease flares.SignificanceAlthough widespread gene expression changes have been reported in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), attempts to link gene deregulation with genome structure have been lacking. Through a computational framework for the segmentation of gene expression data, we reveal extensive fragmentation and reorganization of gene co-regulation domains in SLE, that correlates with disease activity states. Gene co-expression domains pertaining to biological functions implicated in SLE such as the interferon pathway, are being disrupted in patients, while others associated to severe manifestations such as nephritis, emerge in previously uncorrelated regions of the genome. Our results support extensive genome re-organization underlying aberrant gene expression in SLE, which could assist in the early detection of disease flares in patients that are in remission.Graphical Abstract


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aditi Deokar

AbstractSystemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the tenth leading cause of death in females 15-24 years old in the US. The diversity of symptoms and immune pathways expressed in SLE patients causes difficulties in treating SLE as well as in new clinical trials. This study used unsupervised learning on gene expression data from adult SLE patients to separate patients into clusters. The dimensionality of the gene expression data was reduced by three separate methods (PCA, UMAP, and a simple linear autoencoder) and the results from each of these methods were used to separate patients into six clusters with k-means clustering.The clusters revealed three separate immune pathways in the SLE patients that caused SLE. These pathways were: (1) high interferon levels, (2) high autoantibody levels, and (3) dysregulation of the mitochondrial apoptosis pathway. The first two pathways have been extensively studied in SLE. However, mitochondrial apoptosis has not been investigated before to the best of our knowledge as a standalone cause of SLE, independent of autoantibody production, indicating that mitochondrial proteins could lead to a new set of therapeutic targets for SLE in future research.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wook-Young Baek ◽  
Ji-Min Woo ◽  
Hyoun-Ah Kim ◽  
Ju-Yang Jung ◽  
Chang-Hee Suh

AbstractSystemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is characterized by impaired clearance of apoptotic cells. Milk fat globule epidermal growth factor 8 (MFGE8) is a protein that connects αvβ3 integrin on phagocytic macrophages with phosphatidylserine on apoptotic cells. We investigated whether genetic variation of the MFGE8 gene and serum MFGE8 concentration are associated with SLE. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped and serum concentrations were analyzed. The rs2271715 C allele and rs3743388 G allele showed higher frequency in SLE than in healthy subjects (HSs). Three haplotypes were found among 4 SNPs (rs4945, rs1878327, rs2271715, and rs3743388): AACG, CGCG, and CGTC. CGCG haplotype was significantly more common in SLE than in HSs. rs4945 was associated with the erythrocyte sedimentation rate and rs1878327 was associated with alopecia, C-reactive protein, complement 3, anti-dsDNA antibody, and high disease activity. rs2271715 and rs3743388 were associated with renal disease, cumulative glucocorticoid dose, and cyclophosphamide and mycophenolate mofetil use. Serum MFGE8 concentrations were significantly higher in SLE than in HSs. Furthermore, the levels of MFGE8 were significantly higher in SLE than HSs of the rs2271715 CC genotype. In conclusion, MFGE8 genetic polymorphisms are associated not only with susceptibility to SLE but also with disease activity through modulation of gene expression.


2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (9) ◽  
pp. 53-57
Author(s):  
T. N. Gavva ◽  
L. V. Kuzmenkova ◽  
Yu. N. Fedulaev ◽  
T. V. Pinchuk ◽  
D. D. Kaminer ◽  
...  

A case of lung damage in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in a 33-year-old woman is described. This case is of clinical interest due to the complexity of diagnosis due to the fact that SLE is a disease with diverse clinical manifestations involving many organs and systems, which often makes it difficult to timely recognize the onset of the disease. SLE still remains a challenge and requires special attention to the patient s history, clinical and laboratory parameters of the patient, as well as specific immunological examinations.


2018 ◽  
pp. 52-58
Author(s):  
Le Thuan Nguyen ◽  
Bui Bao Hoang

Introduction: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease involving multiple organ systems. The kidney appears to be the most commonly affected organ, especially nephrotic is a serious kidney injury. The clinical, laboratory manifestations and histopathology are very useful for diagnosis, provide the means of predicting prognosis and guiding therapy in nephrotic patients with lupus nephritis. Methods: Descriptive cross-sectional study of nephrotic patients with lupus treated in the Department of Nephrology Trung Vuong Hospital and Cho Ray Hospital between May/2014 and May/2017. Renal histopathological lesions were classified according to International Society of Nephrology/Renal Pathology Society - ISN/RPS ’s 2003. The clinical, laboratory manifestations and histopathological features were described. Results: Of 32 LN with nephritic range proteinuria cases studied, 93.7% were women. The 3 most common clinical manifestations were edema (93.8%), hypertension (96.8%) and pallor (68.9%), musculoskeletal manifestions (46.9%), malar rash (40.6%). There was significant rise in laboratory and immunological manifestions with hematuria (78.1%), Hb < 12g/dL (93.5%), increased Cholesterol (100%), and Triglycerid (87.5%), Creatinine > 1.4 mg/dL (87.5%), increased BUN 71.9%, ANA (+) 93.8%, Anti Ds DNA(+) 96.9%, low C3: 96.9%, low C4: 84.4%. The most various and severe features were noted in class IV with active tubulointerstitial lesions and high activity index. Conclusion: Lupus nephritis with nephrotic range proteinuria has the more severity of histopathological feature and the more severity of the more systemic organ involvements and laboratory disorders were noted. Key words: Systemic lupus, erythematosus (SLE) lupus nepphritis, clinical


Lupus ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 096120332110142
Author(s):  
Tamer A Gheita ◽  
Rasha Abdel Noor ◽  
Esam Abualfadl ◽  
Osama S Abousehly ◽  
Iman I El-Gazzar ◽  
...  

Objective The aim of this study was to present the epidemiology, clinical manifestations and treatment pattern of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in Egyptian patients over the country and compare the findings to large cohorts worldwide. Objectives were extended to focus on the age at onset and gender driven influence on the disease characteristics. Patients and method This population-based, multicenter, cross-sectional study included 3661 adult SLE patients from Egyptian rheumatology departments across the nation. Demographic, clinical, and therapeutic data were assessed for all patients. Results The study included 3661 patients; 3296 females and 365 males (9.03:1) and the median age was 30 years (17–79 years), disease duration 4 years (0–75 years) while the median age at disease onset was 25 years (4–75 years). The overall estimated prevalence of adult SLE in Egypt was 6.1/100,000 population (1.2/100,000 males and 11.3/100,000 females).There were 316 (8.6%) juvenile-onset (Jo-SLE) and 3345 adult-onset (Ao-SLE). Age at onset was highest in South and lowest in Cairo (p < 0.0001). Conclusion SLE in Egypt had a wide variety of clinical and immunological manifestations, with some similarities with that in other nations and differences within the same country. The clinical characteristics, autoantibodies and comorbidities are comparable between Ao-SLE and Jo-SLE. The frequency of various clinical and immunological manifestations varied between gender. Additional studies are needed to determine the underlying factors contributing to gender and age of onset differences.


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