1,721,255 research outputs found

    Proposals for the rheumatological use of JAK inhibitors

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    Janus kinase inhibitors have therapeutic potential for patients with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases, and evidence of greater risks of cardiovascular disease and malignancy than with TNF inhibitors should be carefully considered before recommendations against their use are made. Assessment of the risk-benefit ratios in these patients can instead guide clinical decision-making

    Peripheral arthritis in psoriatic arthritis: from immunopathogenesis to therapy with Janus kinase inhibitors

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    Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a chronic systemic inflammatory disease charac-terised by high phenotypic heterogene-ity. Peripheral polyarticular, pauciar-ticular, axial, enthesitic, and dactylitic forms have been classically described, although it is not clear whether they all have the same pathophysiological mechanisms. Use of cytokine-targeted therapies in the last 20 years has sig-nificantly impacted the quality of life of patients with PsA even though a signifi-cant proportion of patients, regardless of the mechanism of action considered, remain non-responders, suggesting the need for better understanding of the pathophysiological basis of the disease to appropriately stratify patients and identify new therapeutic targets. The pre-clinical demonstration of the patho-physiological relevance of the JAK/ STAT pathway in the pathogenesis of PsA and the emerging efficacy data from randomised controlled trials of JAK inhibitors in PsA patients have set the stage for a new pharmacological era in patients with PsA. In this review, we discuss the rationale for using approved JAK inhibitors for treatment of periph-eral PsA and their positioning in the context of EULAR/GRAPPA guidelines

    Will fecal microbiota transplantation eventually be an effective therapeutic strategy for systemic lupus erythematosus?

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    Gut microbiota dysbiosis serves as a potential trigger that may contribute to metabolic and immune dysregulation that underlies the development of autoimmune diseases. Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is restoration of disturbed microbiota by transplanting foreign gut microbiota from healthy individuals into the gastrointestinal tract of diseased individuals. In this issue of the Journal of Autoimmunity, Huang et al. conducted a 12-week, single-arm pilot clinical trial of oral FMT capsules in patients with active SLE. No serious adverse events (AEs) or deaths were observed and the rate of the primary endpoint (SLE Responder Index-4) was 42.12%. Alternations in bacteria, metabolites and immune parameters were linked to FMT treatment and clinical response in SLE patients. This is the first FMT trial in SLE patients and provides supportive evidence that FMT appears to be a safe, feasible and potentially effective treatment modality in SLE. We await future in-vestigations conducting larger, randomized FMT clinical trials with a longer follow-up to confirm the long-term safety, effectiveness, and potential benefits of FMT-based intervention in SLE and to further demonstrate the underlying microbiological mechanisms

    JAK/STAT Pathway Targeting in Primary Sjögren Syndrome

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    : Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) is an autoimmune systemic disease mainly affecting exocrine glands and resulting in disabling symptoms, as dry eye and dry mouth. Mechanisms underlying pSS pathogenesis are intricate, involving multiplanar and, at the same time, interlinked levels, e.g., genetic predisposition, epigenetic modifications and the dysregulation of both immune system and glandular-resident cellular pathways, mainly salivary gland epithelial cells. Unravelling the biological and molecular complexity of pSS is still a great challenge but much progress has been made in recent years in basic and translational research field, allowing the identification of potential novel targets for therapy development. Despite such promising novelties, however, none therapy has been specifically approved for pSS treatment until now. In recent years, growing evidence has supported the modulation of Janus kinases (JAK) - signal transducers and activators of transcription (STAT) pathways as treatment strategy immune mediated diseases. JAK-STAT pathway plays a crucial role in autoimmunity and systemic inflammation, being involved in signal pathways of many cytokines. This review aims to report the state-of-the-art about the role of JAK-STAT pathway in pSS, with particular focus on available research and clinical data regarding the use of JAK inhibitors in pSS

    JAK/STAT pathway and nociceptive cytokine signalling in rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis

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    The key role of pro-inflammatory cytokines in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is strongly supported by the observation that their blockage is effective in the treatment of these diseases. Indeed, blockade of cytokine signal transduction mechanisms, including the JAK-STAT pathway, may be critical in the treatment of RA and PsA. The Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors tofacitinib and baricitinib target JAKs with high potency and have a well-established rationale for clinical therapeutic use in RA and PsA by affecting multiple cytokines involved in both development and propagation of the disease. Nociceptive responses are also important to consider in the treatment RA and PsA. In this regard, cytokines have also been implicated in modulation of pain and nociception and the JAK/STAT pathway is receiving increasing attention in modulation of nociceptive responses given to its clear role in cytokine signalling. Therefore, inhibition of JAK/STAT pathway with specific JAK inhibitors has the potential to modulate pain in patients with RA and PsA. Data from randomised controlled trials and real-world settings on large numbers of patients with RA (tofacitinib and baricitinib) and randomised controlled trials in patients with PsA (tofacitinib) have shown that a rapid effect on the pain component in these diseases is observed. Thus, it can be hypothesised that JAK inhibitors may have a dual therapeutic role by modulating inflammation and nociception, which leads to clinical benefits including reduction of pain beyond that related to inflammation. The present review will overview the impact of pain in patients with rheumatic disease and the physiological basis of modulating nociceptive pain. Current knowledge about the role of cytokines in mediation of pain and the involvement of the JAK/STAT pathway in modulating nociceptive responses will then be summarised, followed by an analysis of clinical data on pain modulation by JAK inhibitors in the treatment of RA and PsA

    Autophagy in the pathogenesis of ankylosing spondylitis

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    The pathogenesis of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is not well understood, and treatment options have met with limited success. Autophagy is a highly conserved mechanism of controlled digestion of damaged organelles within a cell. It helps in the maintenance of cellular homeostasis. The process of autophagy requires the formation of an isolation membrane. They form double-membraned vesicles called “autophagosomes” that engulf a portion of the cytoplasm. Beyond the role in maintenance of cellular homeostasis, autophagy has been demonstrated as one of the most remarkable tools employed by the host cellular defense against bacteria invasion. Autophagy also affects the immune system and thus is implicated in several rheumatic disease processes. In this article, we explore the potential role of autophagy in the pathogenesis of AS

    Subclinical gut inflammation in ankylosing spondylitis

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    Purpose of review Subclinical gut inflammation has been described in a significant proportion of patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS), up to 10% of them developing it during the time of clinically overt inflammatory bowel disease. Histologic, immunologic, and intestinal microbiota alterations characterize the AS gut. Recent findings Microbial dysbiosis as well as alterations of innate immune responses have been demonstrated in the gut of AS. Furthermore, a growing body of evidence suggests that the gut of AS patients may be actively involved in the pathogenesis of AS through the production of proinflammatory cytokines, such as IL-23p19, and the differentiation of potentially pathogenic innate lymphoid cells producing IL-22 and IL-17. Finally, a strong correlation between the presence of subclinical gut inflammation and the degree of spine inflammation have been also proved in AS. Summary Subclinical gut inflammation and innate immune responses in AS may be considered a possible consequence of microbial dysbiosis. Relationships between cause and effect remain, however, to be answered
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