Focus on Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE, or lupus) is a serious systemic autoimmune disease. Patients with SLE, who most commonly are young adult women, suffer marked morbidity and loss of life expectancy due to autoimmune-mediated inflammation of multiple organs. In the absence of specific targeted therapies, the majority of patients suffer inadequate disease control: a 20 year old diagnosed with SLE has a 10% chance of death before turning 40. Thus, the unmet need for more effective therapies in SLE is profound. The aetiology of SLE is multifactorial, with both genetic and environmental factors at play and roles for both the innate and adaptive immune system. While autoimmunity is critical to the initiation of SLE, morbidity and mortality are due to organ damage, mediated by the inflammation driven by pro-inflammatory cytokines.

The Aim of this research topic is to bring together experts in SLE, both clinical and academic, to discuss the major themes in the field, including the role of cytokines, T and B cell involvement, innate immune responses, genetic factors, therapeutics (those that work and those that don't) and the future of lupus research.

We want to encourage discussion and collaboration, to highlight the promising discoveries; to remind the clinicians that there is immunology behind the disease and to remind the immunologists that there is a disease behind the immunology.