Lupus & antiphospholipid syndrome
Urine Galectin-3 binding protein reflects nephritis activity in systemic lupus erythematosus
Authors' conclusion
Given its ability to discriminate LN patients from active non-renal and inactive SLE patients, the observed correlation with the activity index in renal biopsies, and its levels declining following treatment, u-Gal-3BP shows promise as a non-invasive urinary biomarker to help detecting and to monitor renal involvement in SLE patients
Study context
- Population
- Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) (with and without biopsy proven lupus nephritis (LN)) and population-based controls
- Participants
- 270 patients
- Exposure
- Urinary Gal-3BP (normalized to urine creatinine) in LN vs active non-renal SLE, inactive SLE and population-based controls
- LNn = 86
- Active SLEn = 63
- Inactive SLEn = 73
- Population-based controls (PBC)n = 48reference
- Outcome
- Urinary Gal-3BP levels (ELISA, normalized to urine creatinine)
Methodological detailsbiomarker study, age and sex-matched population-based controls
- Biomarker study
- Age and sex-matched population-based controls
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
- Normalized u-Gal-3BP higher in LN than in the other groups
- LN vs PBC: P < 0.0001
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
u-Gal-3BP by LN class
- Higher in proliferative (class III/IV) and membranous (class V) vs mesangial (class II) LN
- P = 0.04
Correlation of u-Gal-3BP with renal biopsy activity index (proliferative LN)
- R
- 0.42
- P
- P = 0.004
u-Gal-3BP before vs after induction treatment (subset with repeat biopsy, n=10)
- Significant decrease after treatment
- P = 0.03
Other urinary markers (KIM-1, neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), osteopontin (OPN), Gal-3)
- KIM-1 also discriminated LN from the other groups; NGAL, OPN and Gal-3 did not
Original publication
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