Researchers Hone in on Defect in Autophagy that May Underlie Lupus

Taken together, the results suggest that a defect in LAP results in a failure to digest engulfed dying cells, which is followed by increased inflammatory cytokine production and, ultimately, a lupus-like syndrome. The researchers propose that a LAP-deficient individual would accumulate these uncleared dead cells over her lifetime, and the dead cells would gradually skew her immune response, ultimately resulting in pathology.

Lara C. Pullen, PhD, is a medical writer based in the Chicago area.

Reference

1. Martinez J, Cunha LD, Park S, et al. Noncanonical autophagy inhibits the autoinflammatory, lupus-like response to dying cells. Nature. 2016 May 5;533(7601):115–119. doi: 10.1038/nature17950. Epub 2016 Apr 20.