Profile of lupus autoantibodies found in Asia

Abstract

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is characterized by the presence of serum hypergammaglobulinaemia and a vast variety of autoantibodies. As SLE is a multifactorial disease, different genetic makeup in different ethnic groups is likely to contribute to variations on disease prevalence, clinical features and autoantibody profiles. In this article, the prevalence of autoantibody profiles and their clinical associations in SLE patients in different Asian countries were reviewed. Anti-extractable nuclear antibodies including anti-Ro and anti-Sm antibodies were found to be more frequent in Eastern patients than Caucasians. On the other hand, the prevalence of antiphospholipid antibodies was lower in Asians. The clinical associations of different autoantibodies are in general similar to those reported in Caucasian cohorts but with some variations in different Asian countries. This may be affected by the method of measurement of these serum autoantibodies, standardization of immunoassays, sample size of the studies and the method of statistical analysis. Immunogenetic studies into some autoantibodies including anti-Ro/SSA and beta2 glycoprotein I-dependent anticardiolipin antibodies in Asian lupus patients revealed association with HLA Class II alleles. © 2006 Asia Pacific League of Associations for Rheumatology.