Lupus & antiphospholipid syndrome
Renal iron expression and urinary transferrin excretion in lupus nephritis: A case-control study
Authors' conclusion
Elevated urinary transferrin and serum TfR correlated with disease activity in lupus population and may serve as a potential non-invasive biomarker for lupus nephritis.
Study context
- Population
- Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients with and without LN and age and sex matched healthy controls; 85% female, mean age 31.32 ± 8.85, mean SLEDAI 15.0525 ± 1.1592, mean disease duration 47.6 ± 26.56 months80 SLE patients · 90 controls
- Participants
- 40 / 40 / 90
- Comparison
- SLE patients vs healthy controls
- LNn = 40
- Without LNn = 40
- Healthy controln = 90reference
- Outcome
- Urinary transferrin level, renal iron accumulation and TfR gene expression in SLE
Methodological detailsage and sex matched controls
- Age and sex matched controls
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Iron markers (serum iron, ferritin, TfR gene, urinary transferrin)
- Serum and urinary iron biomarkers significantly higher in SLE patients vs controls, except iron, which was lower in lupus patients; similar significant difference between patient subgroups
- Renal transferrin receptor (TfR) gene expression did not significantly differ across LN classes
- Tubular iron deposition observed histopathologically
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Correlation of urinary transferrin with activity score and proteinuria
- Urinary transferrin vs activity score, r
- 0.94
- Urinary transferrin vs activity score, P
- P < 0.0001
- Urinary transferrin vs proteinuria, r
- 0.43
- Urinary transferrin vs proteinuria, P
- P = 0.03
Correlation of serum TfR with disease activity and ESR
- Serum TfR vs disease activity, r
- 0.61
- Serum TfR vs disease activity, P
- P < 0.0001
- Serum TfR vs ESR, r
- 0.4
- Serum TfR vs ESR, P
- P = 0.03
Correlation of renal TfR gene expression
- Renal TfR gene expression did not correlate with urinary transferrin, disease activity or other laboratory parameters
Original publication
Renal iron expression and urinary transferrin excretion in lupus nephritis: A case-control study. Lupus. Published 9 October 2025. doi:10.
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