Cytokine Profiles in Autoantibody Defined Subgroups of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

The aim of this study
was to evaluate how the cytokine profiles
differed between autoantibody based subgroups of systemic lupus erythematosus
(SLE). SLE is a systemic autoimmune disease, characterized by periods
of flares (active disease) and remission (inactive disease). The disease
can affect many organ systems, e.g., skin, joints, kidneys, heart,
and the central nervous system (CNS). SLE patients often have an overproduction
of cytokines, e.g., interferons, chemokines, and interleukins. The
high cytokine levels are part of the systemic inflammation, which
can lead to tissue injury. In the present study, SLE patients were
divided into five groups based on their autoantibody profiles. We
thus defined these five groups: ANA negative, antiphospholipid (aPL)
positive, anti-Sm/anti-RNP positive, Sjögren’s syndrome
(SS) antigen A and B positive, and patients positive for more than
one type of autoantibodies (other SLE). Cytokines were measured using
Mesoscale Discovery (MSD) multiplex analysis. On the basis of the
cytokine data, ANA negative patients were the most deviating subgroup,
with lower levels of interferon (IFN)-γ, tumor necrosis factor
(TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-12/IL-23p40, and interferon gamma-induced
protein (IP)-10. Despite low cytokine levels in the ANA negative group,
autoantibody profiles did not discriminate between different cytokine
patterns.