ANN ARBOR, Mich., Dec. 16 (UPI) -- Researchers from the University of Michigan are investigating the use of kidney biomarkers to aid in tracking the progression of lupus.
In a new study, the team measured the urinary epidermal growth factor in patients with lupus, a chronic autoimmune disease that affects a person's body through inflammation, pain and damage to the skin, joints and organs, particularly kidneys.
The team found a decrease in urinary epidermal growth factor protein correlated with diminishing kidney function in people with chronic kidney disease.
"Lupus patients have a high risk of kidney involvement, which can lead to end-stage renal disease requiring dialysis or transplant," Emily Somers, Ph.D. Sc.M, an associate professor of internal medicine (rheumatology), environmental health sciences and obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Michigan and a member of the Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation, said in a press release. "In addition, there is a great need for biomarkers to detect early kidney involvement and to monitor progression."
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Somers heads the Michigan Lupus Epidemiology and Surveillance (MILES) Program, which consists of a registry of more than 650 lupus patients from southeast Michigan.
"Lupus is a disease that predominantly affects women, often striking at the prime of life," Somers said. "Through the MILES Program, we previously showed that for black women, who are disproportionately affected by lupus, their risk of lupus is highest in their 20s. Forty percent of black females with lupus have kidney involvement, and 15 percent have end-stage renal disease."
In the previous study, Wenjun Ju, Ph.D., associate research scientist, and Dr. Matthias Kretzler, professor of nephrology at the University of Michigan, showed that the measurement of urinary epidermal growth factor in people with lupus was a promising, noninvasive biomarker to track kidney disease progression.
For the recent study, researchers expanded on those findings to show that levels of epidermal growth factor in the urine of 394 patients with lupus improved ability over standard markers to differentiate those with kidney involvement from those without.
The results also suggest that epidermal growth factor could play a role in overall lupus outcomes.
"Validating this biomarker as a way to monitor lupus severity and progression is an exciting step in piecing together the complexity of lupus," Somer said. "Ultimately we aim to enhance our ability to identify and treat those affected sooner, before the disease has caused even more complications."
Somers' findings, preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal, were presented at the American Society of Nephrology's Kidney Week 2016 meeting in November.
