Serum milk fat globule epidermal growth factor 8 elevation may subdivide systemic lupus erythematosus into two pathophysiologically distinct subsets

• Published in: Lupus 2014-04, Vol.23 (4), p.386-394
• Main Authors: Yamamoto, N, Yamaguchi, H, Ohmura, K, Yokoyama, T, Yoshifuji, H, Yukawa, N, Kawabata, D, Fujii, T, Morita, S, Nagata, S, Mimori, T
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Antigens, Surface - blood; Apoptosis; Autoimmune diseases; Biomarkers - blood; Case-Control Studies; Disease; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Epidermal growth factor; Female; Humans; Immunology; Interferon-gamma - blood; Interleukin-10 - blood; Lupus; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic - blood; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic - immunology; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic - physiopathology; Male; Middle Aged; Milk; Milk Proteins - blood; Oils & fats; Recurrence; Retrospective Studies; Rheumatology; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha - blood; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0961-2033; 1477-0962
• DOI: 10.1177/0961203314523870

Objective Impaired clearance of apoptotic cells is a potential trigger of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Milk fat globule epidermal growth factor 8 (MFG-E8) plays an important role in the clearance of dying cells. Previously, we reported serum MFG-E8 was elevated in some SLE patients. Here we further investigated the prevalence of MFG-E8 in active SLE and other autoimmune diseases and also tried to clarify the characteristics of MFG-E8-positive and -negative SLE. Methods Serum MFG-E8 was measured in 40 active non-treated SLE patients, 104 disease controls and 104 healthy controls by ELISA. Clinical characteristics and serum cytokine profiles were compared between MFG-E8-positive and MFG-E8-negative SLE patients. Results Prevalence of MFG-E8 was significantly higher in SLE patients (40%) than in various controls (p