Interferon a (IFN-a) levels are elevated in many patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); however it is not known whether high serum IFN-a activity is a cause or a result of the disease. We studied 266 SLE patients and 405 of their healthy relatives, and frequently found high serum IFN-a activity in both patients and healthy relatives as compared to healthy unrelated individuals. High IFN-a activity was clustered in specific families in both SLE patients and their healthy first-degree relatives, suggesting a heritable trait. Heritability was also supported by quantitative familial correlation of IFN-a activity, concordance in affected sib pairs and frequent transmission of the high IFN-a activity trait from parents to offspring. Autoantibodies to RNAbinding proteins and double-stranded DNA were associated with high IFN-a activity in SLE patients; however these autoantibodies were very uncommon in healthy family members and did not explain the observed familial correlations. The frequency of high IFN-a activity was similar across all studied ethnic backgrounds. These data suggest that high serum IFN-a activity is a complex heritable trait, which plays a primary role in SLE pathogenesis.

Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT01467102.

An unknown environmental agent has been suspected to induce systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus) in man. Prompted by our recent immunochemical findings, we sought evidence for an association between Epstein-Barr virus infection and lupus. Because the vast majority of adults have been infected with Epstein-Barr virus, we chose to study children and young adults. Virtually all (116 of 117, or 99%) of these young patients had seroconverted against Epstein-Barr virus, as compared with only 70% (107 of 153) of their controls (odds ratio 49.9, 95% confidence interval 9.3-1025, P < 0. 00000000001). The difference in the rate of Epstein-Barr virus seroconversion could not be explained by serum IgG level or by cross-reacting anti-Sm/nRNP autoantibodies. No similar difference was found in the seroconversion rates against four other herpes viruses. An assay for Epstein-Barr viral DNA in peripheral blood lymphocytes established Epstein-Barr virus infection in the peripheral blood of all 32 of the lupus patients tested, while only 23 of the 32 matched controls were infected (odds ratio > 10, 95% confidence interval 2.53-infinity, P < 0.002). When considered with other evidence supporting a relationship between Epstein-Barr virus and lupus, these data are consistent with, but do not in themselves establish, Epstein-Barr virus infection as an etiologic factor in lupus.

Background Kawasaki disease (KD) is the most common cause of acute vasculitis and acquired cardiac disease in US children. Untreated, children may develop coronary artery aneurysms, myocardial infarction and sudden death as a result of the illness. Up to a third of KD patients fail to respond to intravenous gammaglobulin (IVIG), the standard therapy, and alternative treatments are being investigated. Genetic studies have indicated a possible role for IL-1β in KD. We therefore explored the role of IL-1β in a murine model of KD. Methods and Results Using an established mouse model of KD that involves injection of Lactobacillus casei cell wall extract (LCWE), we investigated the role of IL- 1β and caspase-1 (activated by the inflammasome and required for IL-1β maturation) in coronary arteritis, and evaluated the efficacy of IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra) as a potential treatment. LCWE-induced IL-1β maturation and secretion was dependent on the NLRP3 inflammasome in macrophages. Both caspase1-deficient and IL-1R-deficient mice were protected from LCWE-induced coronary lesions. Injection of recombinant IL-1β to caspase-1-deficient mice restored the ability of LCWE to cause coronary lesions in response to LCWE. Furthermore, daily injections of the IL-1Ra prevented LCWE-mediated coronary lesions, up to three days after LCWE injection. Conclusions Our results strongly suggest that caspase-1 and IL-1β play critical roles in the development of coronary lesions in this KD mouse model, blocked by IL-1Ra. Therefore, anti-IL-1β treatment strategies may constitute an effective, more targeted treatment of KD to prevent coronary lesions.