"This appears to be a very important gene for lupus," said Timothy W. Behrens, M.D., professor of medicine, Medical School, and principal investigator, "and this is the first time we have identified a variant that predisposes to many different autoimmune diseases. We hope that this discovery will lead to the identification of other genes associated with lupus and other immune disorders." Behrens believes that dozens of genes may be responsible for lupus and that discovering the combination of these genes will be important to developing better diagnosis and treatment of the disease.
In SLE, a person's immune system begins attacking its own tissues. Organs commonly targeted in SLE include the skin, kidneys, joints, lungs, and the central nervous system. The severity of disease and the response to therapy vary widely between patients, said Behrens, and this leads to significant challenges in the diagnosis and management of lupus. "If we know which genes predispose a person to lupus, we may be able to diagnose and treat the disease earlier," he said. "In addition to discovering which combination of genes lead to lupus and other immune diseases, we also hope this information will help us identify new drugs and therapies."
American Journal of Human Genetics