Researchers at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York said if pharmaceutical companies are able to develop drugs that home in on the targets, patients may be able to control their disease with few side effects.

Because abnormally high levels of interferon-alpha can lead to lupus, researchers have developed drugs that block interferon. But the researchers note such drugs have immunosuppressive side effects that can leave patients vulnerable to various illnesses and infections.

Currently, these drugs are in clinical trials. If researchers are able to develop drugs for the newly identified drug targets, patients may be able to avoid such immunosuppressive effects.

The study, led by Dr. Lionel Ivashkiv, is available online in the journal Nature Immunology and will appear in the journal's February print edition.