EDITORIAL - Collaboration, genetic associations, and lupus erythematosus

[Guest guest]

New England Journal of Medicine

Published at www.nejm.org January 20, 2008 (10.1056/NEJMe0800096)

K. Crow, M.D.

Collaboration, Genetic Associations, and Lupus Erythematosus

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a disease that preferentially

targets women during the reproductive years, is considered by many

clinicians and investigators to be the prototypic autoimmune disease.

Among clinicians, this status is based on the characteristic

involvement of multiple organ systems — most notably, skin, kidneys,

joints, central nervous system, and cardiovascular system — with the

deposition of immune complexes and complement, inflammation, and

vascular damage noted by pathologists. From the perspective of the

immunologist, SLE is a model disease that has provided important

insights into immune-system function. As is characteristic of most

complex diseases, genetic and environmental factors determine the

development of SLE and what its clinical manifestations will be.

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Read the entire editorial here:

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/NEJMe0800096v1

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Not an MD