El propósito de este sitio es proporcionar información y recursos que ayudarán a aquellos diagnosticados con lupus mejor comprender y manejar esta enfermedad, al igual que ayudar a aquellos que vienen a nosotros para recibir información. Queremos proporcionarle los recursos educativos más actuales e informativos. Creemos que nuestros programas y servicios son una fuente de estímulo y poder. Nuestra meta es mejorar la calidad de vida para aquellos afligidos con lupus a través de educación, servicios, concienciación y trabajo comunitario, y apoyo a la investigación que resultará en mejores tratamientos y, algún día, en una cura.

Estamos en el proceso de traducir las páginas de este sitio y de poder ofrecerles más y más información y recursos en español muy pronto.

Support Groups - Our support groups are held throughout Nassau, Suffolk and Queens. A professional counselor who is also a person with lupus facilitates these groups. For a list of support group locations and times.

LupusLine Long Island- Queens - a free telephone peer counseling service for people with lupus and their families.

New Patient Orientation- Free classes for newly diagnosed people with lupus, their families and friends are held every other month at the chapter office. Please check the calendar for dates.

Education Day Programs - An all day education program on lupus that helps participants learn the medical facts about Lupus and how to live with this chronic illness. The group is limited in size so that experiences can be shared.

Doctor Referral List - Our Alliance provides a list of specialists in Rheumatology and dermatology who have indicated an interest in treating individuals with lupus. This list contains physicians in Nassau, Suffolk, Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan. Call our office and we will help you locate a doctor in your area.

If you would like to research a rheumatologist in your area go to:
http://www.rheumatology.org/directory

If you would like to research a dermatologist go to: http://www.aad.org

Newsletters -The Lupus News Link is mailed quarterly to people with lupus, their families, health care professionals, and clinics. The newsletter gives current information about lupus, research updates, volunteer opportunities, chapter events and more.

Seminars - An annual seminar, as well as periodic workshops, is specifically designed to meet the needs of the lupus community. Presentations are by both medical and business professionals. Topics are based on requests from members and participants. Dates, topics and locations appear in our newsletter and in our calendar.

Resource Library - Books on the various aspects of lupus are available for purchase. Members are also able to borrow books and videos from the Alliances lending library.

Financial Assistance Program - The Quality of Life program was developed in 2000 to help individuals with lupus meet needs that are not covered by other resources. Inquiries regarding the eligibility and availability of this program may contact our office at 1-800-850-9000. This program is limited in scope and as a source of last resort.

Speakers’ Bureau - Trained speakers are available to address professionals, schools and personal groups about lupus and the Lupus Alliance, Long Island/Queens Affiliate. No group is too large or too small. Call our office to schedule a speaker.

Kids Programs - Our “Let Kids be Kids” program is available to children 7-17 who have lupus or a family member with lupus. Day trips to fun places are planned, transportation included. Scholarships are also available to children afflicted with lupus who have special needs that cannot be covered by other means.

Spanish speaking staff

Wheelchairs Available. We now have 4 wheelchairs that have been donated to this office. If anyone has a need for one, they will be available for borrowing. Please contact the office to request one.

Phone: 516-783-3370 or1-800-850-9000

Fax: 516-826-2058
Email: info@lupusli.org, info@lupusliqueens.org

A copy of our annual report may be obtained, upon request, from the Lupus Alliance or from the Office of the Attorney General, Charities Bureau, 120 Broadway, New York New York 10027. For a copy of our 990 and financial information go to www.guidestar.org

Friday 9:30AM - 4:00 PM

"Not every trial is going to be a success," said Lupus Research Institute President Margaret G. Dowd. "But full data from this major study will be very important in designing and implementing future trials. We commend Genentech and Biogen Idec for their commitment and pioneering efforts to develop needed new treatments for people with lupus."

The multi-center, double-blind, placebo-controlled study used sophisticated tools for measuring response. Rituxan failed to prove more effective than placebo in producing clinically meaningful benefits. More than 250 people with moderate-to-severe lupus were enrolled in the 52-week trial.

"While we were all hoping for a positive outcome, every trial is a learning process," noted leading lupus physician Richard Furie, MD, chief of rheumatology at North Shore-LIJ Health System in New York.

"Important information gleaned from this ambitious trial and others will ultimately help people with lupus," he added. "A failed trial does not mean the drug is ineffective. You chip away at the problem, and with help from patients, you learn what questions to ask and what measurements of success to look for."

Decades have passed without an FDA drug approval for lupus, and current treatments are sparse and often toxic. "Now more than ever we need to dig deep and look into the human biology of lupus with new eyes to build a robust pipeline of new treatments," Dowd said. "We need the research and we need to fill the trials. We must all do our part to succeed."

To learn more about lupus clinical trials, log on to www.LupusTrials.org.

“There is a critical need to discover new therapeutic pathways in lupus as no new therapy has been approved in more than 30 years. We will analyze the full set of data from this trial in the coming months, share the findings with regulatory authorities, and apply the key insights to our continued research in lupus,” said Evan Beckman, M.D., Senior Vice President, Immunology Research and Development, Biogen Idec.

About the Study
This Phase II/III randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-center study was designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety profile of Rituxan in patients with moderate-to-severe SLE on a background immunosuppressant. This study excluded patients with lupus nephritis (LN). A total of 257 patients from approximately 55 sites in the U.S. and Canada were randomized 2:1 to receive Rituxan plus prednisone or placebo plus prednisone in two infusions 15 days apart. The patients were retreated six months later with the same regimen. Patients were evaluated for efficacy every four weeks for 52 weeks. The majority of patients are being monitored to Week 78.

The primary endpoint of the study was the proportion of patients who achieved either a Major Clinical Response (MCR) or Partial Clinical Response (PCR) using the BILAG instrument at 52 weeks. Additional endpoints included: time adjusted area-under-the-curve minus baseline of BILAG score over 52 weeks; proportion of patients who achieve a MCR, and proportion of patients who achieve a PCR (including MCR) at Week 52; proportion of patients who achieve BILAG C or better in all domains at Week 24; time to moderate or severe flare over 52 weeks; change in SLE Expanded Health Survey physical function score from baseline at Week 52; and proportion of subjects who achieve a MCR with  10 mg prednisone per day from Weeks 24 to 52.

Detailed safety data from the study is currently being evaluated. The incidence of overall adverse events and serious adverse events were comparable between Rituxan and placebo treatment groups. Side effects occurring more frequently in the Rituxan arm included: herpes viral infections (15.4 percent in the Rituxan arm versus 8.0 percent in the placebo arm), and neutropenia (3.6 percent in the Rituxan arm versus 0 percent in the placebo arm). Overall, infusion reactions were mild to moderate in severity. The companies continue to monitor the long-term safety of Rituxan treatment.

The clinical database was locked, the study unblinded and results for the primary and secondary endpoints initially reviewed on April 25, 2008.

This is the first of two studies evaluating the safety and efficacy of Rituxan in patients with lupus. The second, an ongoing Phase III trial (LUNAR) is evaluating Rituxan in patients with active lupus nephritis with results expected in Q1- 2009.

About the BILAG Response Index
The British Isles Lupus Assessment Group (BILAG) index is a validated clinical measure of lupus disease activity. EXPLORER is the first pivotal trial to use BILAG.
Unlike other lupus activity indices in which a global score is calculated, the BILAG index reports disease activity in each organ system separately. Physicians evaluate eight organ-based systems (general, mucocutaneous, neurological, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and respiratory, vascular, renal, and hematological) every 4 weeks when scoring lupus activity using BILAG. Physical exam findings and lab results for each organ system are used to produce a rating that compares the level of disease severity over the past 4 weeks to the previous assessment.

About Lupus
Lupus is an autoimmune disease characterized by inflammation of the joints, skin, kidneys, heart, lungs, blood vessels and the central nervous system. In lupus, the immune system attacks healthy tissues and cells, damaging multiple organs and systems in the body.

Although the signs and symptoms of lupus vary significantly, they commonly include a butterfly-shaped rash across the nose and cheeks, hair loss, sensitivity to light and other skin rashes. Some patients experience more severe symptoms, including fatigue, pain while breathing, joint pain, fever, anemia and ulcers in the mouth and nose. Lupus can cause inflammation of the heart muscle, coronary arteries and the pericardium (a protective layer of tissue enveloping the heart), greatly increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease and heart attack.

While estimates vary widely regarding the number of people affected by lupus, approximately 400,000 patients in the U.S. are believed to have the disease. The course of disease in SLE is highly variable among patients and like other autoimmune diseases, most lupus patients experience periods of illness called flares, and periods of wellness, or remission.

There are several types of lupus, including the most common form of the disease, SLE, which comprises 70 percent of all lupus cases. Women aged 15 to 45 comprise 90 percent of SLE patients.
Lupus nephritis is a common and serious complication of SLE that occurs when the disease affects kidneys; approximately one-third of SLE patients will develop lupus nephritis. Currently, there is no cure for lupus.

About Rituxan
Rituxan, discovered by Biogen Idec, is a therapeutic antibody that first received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval in November 1997 for the treatment of relapsed or refractory, low-grade or follicular, CD20-positive, B cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). It was also approved in the European Union under the trade name MabThera® in June 1998. In February 2006, Rituxan also received FDA approval in combination with methotrexate to reduce signs and symptoms and, in January 2008, to slow the progression of structural damage in adult patients with moderately-to-severely active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who have had an inadequate response to one or more TNF-antagonist therapies. In addition, Rituxan received FDA approval in February 2006 for first-line treatment of previously-untreated patients with follicular NHL in combination with CVP (cyclophosphamide, vincristine and prednisolone) chemotherapy and in September 2006, also was approved for the treatment of non-progressing low-grade, CD20-positive, B cell NHL as a single agent, in patients with stable disease or who achieve a partial or complete response following first-line treatment with CVP chemotherapy, and for previously untreated diffuse large B cell, CD20-positive, NHL in combination with CHOP or other anthracycline-based chemotherapy regimens.

Rituxan has more than 10 years of clinical experience across all indications and more than 1,000,000 patient exposures.

Rituxan is the first treatment for RA that selectively targets immune cells known as CD20-positive B cells. Rituxan does not target the entire immune system.

CD20 is not found on stem cells, pro-B cells (B cell precursors), normal plasma cells, or other normal tissues. Rituxan does not target plasma cells. These cells make antibodies that help fight infections.

Rituxan does not target stem cells in the bone marrow, and B cells can usually regenerate and gradually return to normal levels after treatment with Rituxan in about 12 months for most patients.

Important Safety Information
Rituxan has been associated with fatal infusion reactions, tumor lysis syndrome (TLS), severe mucocutaneous reactions and progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML).

There are two reports of PML in Rituxan-treated patients with SLE. These patients had longstanding disease and had received other immunosuppressants including prednisone, azathioprine and cyclophosphamide. It is important to note that patients with SLE are often profoundly immunocompromised either due to their disease or the medications they are taking. While rare, PML is a known risk in severely immunocompromised individuals. A recent analysis showed that many cases of PML in SLE have occurred in patients with minimal immunosuppression, which suggests that SLE itself may predispose patients to PML. A causal relationship between Rituxan and PML has not been established but cannot be ruled out.

Hepatitis B reactivation and cardiac arrhythmias and angina have also been observed. Patients should be closely observed for signs of infection if biologic agents and/or disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs other than methotrexate are used concomitantly. Common adverse reactions (≥ 5%): hypertension, nausea, upper respiratory tract infection, arthralgia, pruritus, and pyrexia.

Genentech and collaborators are leading research in the field of immunology by developing a pipeline of potential agents for various immune-mediated diseases, with ongoing clinical trials in lupus, RA, MS and antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis.

Genentech and Biogen Idec co-market Rituxan in the United States, and Roche markets MabThera in the rest of the world, except Japan, where Rituxan is co-marketed by Chugai and Zenyaku Kogyo Co. Ltd. For a copy of the Rituxan full prescribing information, including Boxed Warning, please call 1-800-821-8590 or visit http://www.gene.com.

To help find a cure for the over 2 Million Americans who have lupus, the Alliance advocates made up of people with lupus, siblings, spouses and parents, told their stories about living with lupus and urged Congress to seek a Fiscal Year 2009 progress report from the NIH on implementation of its five-year, trans-Institute research plan on lupus. The update will help keep the public informed about the progress and hopefully success the 5 Year NIH Lupus Research Plan has achieved.

Christine Donato, a long time lupus advocate, who was diagnosed at age 15, and is also an honoree at this years Lupus Gala Brunch on April 27, spoke about the experience, “Going to Washington, DC was an empowering experience. I felt that putting a real face on this disease helped members of Congress better understand Lupus than just reading facts on a piece of paper ever could”.

The advocates also asked Congress to provide the HHS Office of Minority Health with support in the Fiscal Year 2009 Labor/HHS Appropriations Bill for new lupus education efforts for health professionals. The $5 million dollars requested will initiate education efforts aimed at teaching health providers how to diagnose lupus earlier and start therapy sooner, which could eventually shorten the length most people with lupus suffer silently, waiting for a definitive diagnosis and then finally treatment. Most people with lupus suffer an average of 5 years, before they finally find a doctor who can diagnose them.

The last item on the advocate’s agenda was to urge Congress to begin to restore the nation’s medical research enterprise and support a 6.6% or $1.9 billion increase in funding for the NIH fiscal year 2009.
“Without this increase important research into hundreds of diseases, not just lupus would be stalled, this is something everyone in the country has a stake in, not just the 2 Million Americans with lupus“, Executive Director JoAnn Quinn stated.

Among the members of Congress the Alliance met with were Congressman Peter King, Congressman Steve Israel and Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy, all of whom have been staunch supporters for the fight against lupus. Advocates also met with the health aides for Congressman Joseph Crowley, Gary Ackerman, Gregory Meeks and Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez.

If you have lupus or know someone who does please call the Lupus Alliance of LI/Q for help at 1-800-850-9000 or visit their website at www.lupusliqueens.org.

The statistics on lupus are staggering and climbing. Lupus affects 1 out of every 185 Americans. 44 people everyday are diagnosed with lupus. In over 40 years there has not been a new medication approved for lupus. Armed with these statistics the Lupus Alliance is fighting harder than ever before to reach out to those with lupus who need their assistance, compassion and knowledge.

The programs offered by the Alliance include everything from college scholarships and kids programs to support groups, books and brochures, doctor referral lists and more. Also included in these services is LupusLine, a free peer-to-peer counseling program available to anyone with lupus, 18 years or older. LupusLine counselors, made up of specially trained volunteers who have lupus, speak with callers on an ongoing basis about emotional concerns related to their illness. Another program offered by the Alliance is their Quality of Life grant program designed to help those with lupus who are in financial need. This program is a confidential service that offers up to $500 a year for medical bills, pharmacy costs, utility bills and more. The application is easy and only requires proof of income, lupus diagnosis and residency.

During the year, the Lupus Alliance holds Education Days in their Bellmore office from 9:30 am – 4:00pm. The remaining dates this year are: June 14th, September 6th and November 15th. Education Day, an open forum designed to encourage interactive discussion, is hosted by trained speakers with lupus. The day is geared towards anyone with lupus; whether you are newly diagnosed and need to educate yourself on the ins and outs of the disease, or you have been living with lupus for some time but want to keep up to date on the newest advances, medications and treatments. The meeting can also be an invaluable teaching tool to spouses, children, parents or siblings who need to learn how to care for, cope with and support their loved one with lupus. Questions are encouraged and a light breakfast, lunch and all educational materials are included in the fee of $10 pp for members of the Alliance or $15 pp for non-members. Registration is required by calling the Lupus office.

To fund these programs the Alliance will hold their 15th Anniversary Walk-Along for Lupus on October 19th at Eisenhower Park. This is the first and longest running Lupus walk on Long Island, which raised over $260,000 last year, 90% of which was raised by families and individuals from the area. If you would like to walk, help, or donate please call the office for a walk packet and details. If you would like to participate in any of the above programs, or fill out an application for a grant or scholarship, please call the Lupus Alliance at 1-800-850-9000 or email them at: info@lupusliqueens.org. Suffering with lupus is hard enough; no one should suffer through it alone. Please call today.

The breakthrough was supported at a critical juncture by the LRI, the nation’s only organization solely dedicated to funding novel and innovative science to prevent, treat, and cure lupus. “Without the LRI, this project would have stopped—and a fundamental discovery in immunology would not have happened,” Dr. Lemke said.

Major Implications

In this study, Dr. Lemke builds upon findings that he and his team previously reported, when he noticed that mice genetically engineered to be born without a tiny family of three receptors—TAM receptor tyrosine kinases—developed an autoimmune illness similar to lupus in humans.

In the Cell article, Dr. Lemke now illustrates how these “TAM” receptors, under normal circumstances, are so critical in stopping the immune system from mounting an out-of-control inflammatory response against invading viruses and bacteria. When chemical messengers (cytokines) prompt immune cells to attack, he explains, they also activate TAM receptors, which then alert the cells to no longer react to the cytokines. This keeps the immune system orderly as well as relatively tranquil.

But in people with lupus and certain other autoimmune illnesses, the TAM signalling network may be seriously compromised. The switch to inhibit inflammation on this network may be absent—thereby resulting in immune system pandemonium.

People with lupus tend to have low levels of a blood factor (proteins S) that TAM receptors require to carry out their job. Giving modified versions of protein S, or its related TAM activator Gas6, to people with lupus may represent a means of halting the immune system destruction of precious organs and tissues. “This is definitely something we intend to investigate,” Dr. Lemke said.

Winning Strategy

Dr. Lemke is one of 85 recipients of $300,000, 3-year grants given by the LRI since 2000 to explore brilliant but untested novel hypotheses as to why and how lupus occurs, and what can be done to prevent and stop the illness.

Founded by families and shaped by scientists, the Institute has had remarkable success in breathing life in to ideas such as Dr. Lemke’s that would otherwise not have obtained funding. LRI recipients span the nation—they are at 51 academic medical centers in 20 states—and work in such diverse disciplines as immunology, genetics, cardiology, nephrology, dermatology, and neurology.

“This strategy of funding only novel scientific ideas in lupus has more than demonstrated its power,” said William E. Paul, MD, chief of the Laboratory of Immunology at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease-National Institutes of Health and chair of the LRI’s Scientific Advisory Board. “Through its annual support, the LRI strengthens the lupus research landscape and moves novel concepts forward to secure large-scale federal funding.”

Already, LRI-funded scientists have turned the Institute’s $9 million investment from 2001 to 2004 into a record $30 million in new grant funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other sources. Dr. Lemke’s research program provides an example of this leveraging: as a result of the success of his LRI-funded work, he very recently obtained NIH funding to sustain and extend the program.

About the Lupus Research Institute

The LRI leads the way to a cure for lupus by unleashing the scientific community’s creativity, championing innovation and exploring uncharted territory in lupus research. It is the only national nonprofit organization singularly devoted to innovative science in lupus, recognizing that most major breakthroughs come from unexpected directions. The Institute fosters and supports only the highest-ranked new science to prevent, treat, and cure this chronic autoimmune disease. To learn more, visit www.LupusResearchInstitute.org.

About the Salk Institute

The Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, California, is an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to fundamental discoveries in the life sciences, the improvement of human health and the training of future generations of researchers. Jonas Salk, M.D., whose polio vaccine all but eradicated the crippling disease poliomyelitis in 1955, opened the Institute in 1965 with a gift of land from the City of San Diego and the financial support of the March of Dimes.

About Lupus

The more than 1.5 million Americans with lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus), and millions more across the globe with this and other autoimmune illnesses, are potentially affected by this discovery. There is no known treatment or cure for lupus, a chronic disorder that can attack virtually any body organ and can be fatal. Lupus is considered the prototype autoimmune disease because the body’s immune system forms antibodies that can attack virtually any healthy organ or tissue, from the kidneys to the brain, heart, lungs, skin, joints, and blood. Lupus is a leading cause of heart attack, kidney disease, and stroke among young women. More Americans are diagnosed with lupus than with multiple sclerosis, cystic fibrosis, cerebral palsy, sickle cell anemia, or AIDS.

Rapid discovery and technological advances make new direction possible.

Fast-paced scientific discovery in lupus is producing a multitude of insights into the mechanisms at play in animal models of the lupus immune system gone awry.

Now the relevance of these findings needs to be established in human disease.

“What works in the mouse with lupus just doesn’t always work in the person with lupus—including what may first appear to be promising drug treatments,” said Michel Nussenzweig, MD, PhD, of Rockefeller University in New York and a member of the LRI’s Scientific Advisory Board and Novel Research Task Force. “We are therefore enthusiastic about supporting research in patients.”

Today the technology exists to take important animal model findings to the next level and open windows of discovery in human lupus—a critical step to developing successful new therapies. Often, only a small amount of human material is needed to supply key information.

“The real need in lupus research is creative work in human lupus biology,” said Peter E. Lipsky, MD, chief of the Autoimmunity Branch of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS). “This is one of the most important areas to pursue. And now, for the first time, we have the tools to ask incisive questions and make new insights directly in the human lupus immune system,”

Powerful pooling of talent and technology

Because the most productive research in human lupus requires basic scientists with cutting edge ideas and experimental techniques, clinicians with access to large patient cohorts, plus key technology components, the LRI will consider consortia applications for this Human Lupus Biology initiative.

Up to three investigators at one or more institutions can now request up to $900,000 over three years to pursue novel human lupus studies. Consortia represent the ability to generate diverse skilled groups—our best scientists and best clinicians regardless of institutional affiliation—coming together to move the field forward.

Pioneering discovery

Since initiating its program of novel research and ambitious inquiry in lupus eight years ago, the LRI has been at the forefront of the field—supporting innovation and risk, and producing dramatic scientific results and novel insights into lupus and autoimmunity. LRI grants for innovative hypotheses have now produced well over $35 million in NIH and other funding for novel work in lupus.

With the addition of the Human Lupus Biology initiative to its ongoing Novel Research Program, the LRI further propels the field of lupus inquiry, discovery, and results, bringing tangible hope for better treatments and a cure for this disease.

Attending this event were Board Members, Violet Regan and John Vander-Putten, Executive Director Joann Quinn, staff members; Nancy Beder, J.C. VanderPutten-Bonner and Silvia Heredia, and lupus patient advocates and members; Christine and Frank Donato along with their 7 month old daughter Olivia, Mary Geraghty, Bonnie and David Mamiye and Carole-Anne Bonner along with her brother Luke.

While in Washington D.C., the advocates met with several members of Congress including, Congressman Peter King, Congressman Steve Israel, and Congresswoman Caroline McCarthy, as well as the Health aides for Congressman Gary Ackerman, Joseph Crowley and Gregory meeks, and Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez.

____________________________________________

The advocates requested a 6.6% or $1.9 Billion increase in funding for the National Institutes of Health fiscal Year 2008 budget. This increase will help advance lupus research in the years to come, leading hopefully to a cure someday soon.

The Lupus Alliance advocates also urged Congress to seek a Fiscal Year 2009 progress report from the NIH on implementation of its five-year, trans-Institute research plan on lupus. The update will help keep the public informed about the progress and hopefully success the 5 Year NIH Lupus Research Plan has achieved.

The third issue that The Lupus Alliance advocates brought to the attention of Congress requested that Congress provide the HHS Office of Minority Health with support in the Fiscal Year 2009 Labor/HHS Appropriations Bill for new lupus education efforts for health professionals. The $5 million requested will initiate education efforts aimed at teaching health providers how to diagnose lupus earlier and start therapy sooner.

Once again The Lupus Alliance had a successful few days in Washington D.C. meeting with our members of Congress, urging them to help those with lupus by increasing funding in the NIH, and educating doctors on the signs, symptoms and diagnosis of lupus.

If you would like to be a patient advocate, please call the office at 516-783-3370.

Besides being able to hang out with Greg, you can win a Birthday Party at USA Roller Skating Rink, enjoy the Live DJ, participate in the trivia games, play video games or just come down, enjoy the atmosphere and show your support for your friends, neighbors, and colleagues who suffer from lupus.

United Skates of America, Inc. is located at:
1276 Hicksville
Seaford, NY 11783

For details or to order tickets in advance, please call The Lupus Alliance at 516-783-3370, or e-mail: info@lupusliqueensorg.

"We want to eliminate those hyperactive immune cells that lead to continuation of the disease but maintain infection-fighting white blood cells," Perlman said. "This will restore the balance of cells in the immune system, which has become very skewed in lupus patients."

It is estimated that between 1.5 and 2 million Americans have some form of lupus, which can damage the kidneys, heart, joints, skin, lungs, blood vessels, liver and nervous system.

In those who have an autoimmune disease such as lupus, the cells in the immune system become confused. Instead of attacking only infected cells or foreign bodies, they turn ultra-vigilant and attack the body's own normal cells and tissues, causing inflammation, pain and injuries.

Perlman and his team have discovered the double whammy for lupus patients. They harbor a higher than normal number of immune cells that carry too much of the pro-survival or anti-apoptotic proteins that tells them to keep living past their prime.

Normally these cells should undergo "apoptosis," a natural process by which cells die so they don't spread infection or take away nutrients from healthy cells. The signal to die can come from inside the cell itself or from outside the cell.

Perlman and his colleagues found that the communications system that tells immune cells that it's time to die gets turned off in lupus patients and causes immune cells to accumulate in the body. This failure to delete these cells allows the disease to progress, Perlman said.

Perlman's research team took blood from 14 lupus patients and 14 healthy people. Patients with lupus produced more immune cells with too much of the proteins that prolonged cell life. The more of these immune cells patient had, the more severe was his or her disease.

The team used that knowledge to create mice that had a defect in the two known "death pathways" that signal when they're supposed to die. They showed that these mice displayed high numbers of immune cells that would normally die and that all of the mice developed very severe lupus.

"We showed it in patients and reproduced the result in mice," Perlman said. "Now we can use this mouse model to do pre-clinical trials for therapies to fight lupus."

The next step, Perlman said, is to test a therapy that blocks proteins that prevent cells from dying by mimicking the action of proteins that tell immune cells it's time to die.

"We want to deliver a treatment that will target those proteins that keep these immune cells alive. This could induce a type of remission in patients," Perlman said.

"We need to tilt the balance toward the normal cells cells that don't want to attack the body but function correctly so the patient can fight infection and have a normal life. We want to kill those cells that lead to the continuation of disease."

The research was conducted in collaboration with the University of Texas- Southwestern Medical Center, University of California-San Diego and Yale University. It was funded by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, both divisions of the National Institutes of Health, and the autoimmune disease fund provided by Saint Louis University.

Established in 1836, Saint Louis University School of Medicine has the distinction of awarding the first medical degree west of the Mississippi River. The school educates physicians and biomedical scientists, conducts medical research, and provides health care on a local, national and international level. Research at the school seeks new cures and treatments in five key areas: cancer, liver disease, heart/lung disease, aging and brain disease, and infectious disease.