Lupus is an autoimmune disease that can affect various parts of the body, including the skin, joints, heart, lungs, blood, kidneys, and brain. Normally the body’s immune system makes proteins called antibodies that protect the body against viruses, bacteria and other foreign invaders. These foreign invaders are called antigens.

In an autoimmune disorder like lupus, the immune system cannot tell the difference between foreign substances and its own cells and tissues. The immune system then makes antibodies that, simply put, attack the body itself. This causes inflammation, pain and damage to various organs.

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  1. Medicare Help, Immune Cell’s Role, Lupus Nephritis Demonstrated, Paves Way for Safety Testing, of Potential New Use for Asthma Drug National Institutes of Health scientists have discovered that the activation of immune cells called basophils causes kidney damage in a mouse model of lupus nephritis. These findings and the team’s associated research in humans may lead to new treatments for this serious disease, a severe form of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) that affects the kidneys […]...
  2. Systemic lupus erythematosus: From mouse models to human disease and treatment On Sept. 2-3, 2010, the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), and the NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH) will convene a two-day conference on Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: From Mouse Models to Human Disease and […]...
  3. Cells’ energy factories linked to damaging inflammation Scientists have discovered that molecules called reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by the energy factories, or mitochondria, in cells, may play a role in a rare inherited disorder in which uncontrolled inflammation damages the body’s tissues. Their research in human and mouse cells suggests that blocking these molecules could reduce inflammation in TNF receptor-associated periodic […]...
  4. Medicare Card, NIH-funded researchers show possible trigger for MS nerve damage Medicare Card, NIH-funded researchers show possible trigger for MS nerve damage...
  5. Scientists find approach to enhance and prolong immune attack against tumor cells Investigators have identified a new class of human immune cells that behave like stem cells. These cells, a subtype of T lymphocytes, which comprise a small fraction of white blood cells, may prove more effective than any previously reported type of T cell for treating tumors. The study, by scientists at the National Cancer Institute […]...
  6. Medicare Card, Scientists Identify Markers, Human Breast Cancer Cells, Linked to Development of an Aggressive, But Less Common Form of Breast Cancer Scientists have identified a group of surface markers on cells linked to an aggressive type of breast cancer called estrogen receptor-negative cancer. In this preliminary study, estrogen-negative breast cancer developed when three markers, CD44+, CD49fhi, and CD133hi were present simultaneously on the surface of human cells taken from breast cancer patients and transplanted into a […]...
  7. Study identifies gene that suppresses cell’s immune activation A new study of prostate tumors has shown that a gene, FOXO3, suppresses activation of cells related to immunity and thus leads to a reduced immune response against a growing cancer. One of the main problems in treating cancer by vaccine or immunotherapy is that tumors often evade the body’s immune response — and one […]...
  8. Medicare Card, Research breakthrough selectively represses the immune system Medicare Card, Research breakthrough selectively represses the immune system...
  9. Drug halts organ damage in inflammatory genetic disorder A new study shows that Kineret (anakinra), a medication approved for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, is effective in stopping the progression of organ damage in people with neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease (NOMID). This rare and debilitating genetic disorder causes persistent inflammation and ongoing tissue damage. The research was performed by scientists at the National […]...
  10. Medicare Card, Do You Know the Difference Between Headaches and Migraines? Medicare Card, Do You Know the Difference Between Headaches and Migraines?...
  11. Scientists identify novel approach to view inner workings of viruses More than 32 million people in the United States have auto antibodies, which are proteins made by the immune system that target the body’s tissues and define a condition known as autoimmunity, a study shows....
  12. Study shows 32 million Americans have autoantibodies that target their own tissues More than 32 million people in the United States have auto antibodies, which are proteins made by the immune system that target the body’s tissues and define a condition known as autoimmunity, a study shows....
  13. Medicare Card, February Is American Heart Month Medicare Card, February Is American Heart Month...
  14. Supported study shows how immune cells change wiring of the developing mouse brain Researchers have shown in mice how immune cells in the brain target and remove unused connections between brain cells during normal development. This research, supported by the National Institutes of Health, sheds light on how brain activity influences brain development, and highlights the newly found importance of the immune system in how the brain is […]...
  15. Medicare Card, NIH scientists uncover how immune cells sense who they are Medicare Card, NIH scientists uncover how immune cells sense who they are...