The Journal of Immunology, 2001, 166: 2913-2916.
Copyright © 2001 by The American Association of Immunologists
Cutting Edge: Reversal of Murine Lupus Nephritis with CTLA4Ig and Cyclophosphamide1
David I. Daikh2 and
David Wofsy
Department of Medicine, Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the University of California, San Francisco, CA 94121
 |
Abstract
|
|---|
Cyclophosphamide (CTX) prevents progression of nephritis and
prolongs survival in (NZB x NZW)F1 (B/W) mice and is
used to treat humans with lupus nephritis. To compare the efficacy of
CTLA4Ig with CTX and determine whether there is an incremental benefit
to combining CTLA4Ig with CTX, we treated B/W mice with CTX, CTLA4Ig,
or both agents. In mice with mild renal disease, treatment delayed the
onset of proteinuria and prolonged survival in all groups. In mice with
advanced renal disease, treatment with both agents reduced proteinuria
in 71% of mice, whereas mice treated with either agent alone had no
such improvement. Survival was also markedly improved among mice
treated with both agents. Thus, combination treatment with CTX and
CTLA4Ig is more effective than either agent alone in reducing renal
disease and prolonging survival of B/W mice with advanced nephritis.
This striking reversal of proteinuria is unprecedented in animal models
of SLE.
 |
Introduction
|
|---|
Lupus
nephritis is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality among
patients with systemic lupus erythematosus
(SLE)3 and is the major cause of
death in the (NZB x NZW)F1 (B/W) lupus-prone mouse.
Early studies in this murine model showed that administration of the
alkylating agent cyclophosphamide (CTX) significantly retarded the
progression of kidney disease (1, 2, 3, 4). After demonstration
of similar results in humans, CTX has become the primary drug used for
diffuse proliferative glomerulonephritis among patients with renal
lupus (5). Selective biologic agents have also been used
successfully in murine lupus models and have resulted in a slowing of
the progression of renal disease (6, 7, 8, 9, 10). More recently,
the value of interrupting T cell costimulatory signals has been
demonstrated by the finding that CTLA4Ig, a soluble recombinant protein
that contains the B7-binding domain of CTLA4, prevents the progression
of renal disease and prolongs survival in B/W mice (11).
However, although both CTX and CTLA4Ig have efficacy in murine lupus,
these agents may result in different degrees of immunosuppression and
may have different side effects. As an alkylating agent, CTX is not
only toxic to cells that are in active cell cycle, but is also a
carcinogen and mutagen. At doses used for lupus nephritis in humans,
CTX therapy results in a reduction in peripheral lymphocytes
(12) and an increased risk of some infections (13, 14). In addition, prolonged therapy commonly results in ovarian
failure (15), azoospermia (16), and an
increased rate of various malignancies (17). In contrast,
CTLA4Ig does not reduce lymphocyte counts in B/W mice
(11). While CTLA4Ig suppresses humoral immune responses to
specific Ags in vivo, it does not appear to cause broad, long-lasting
immunosuppression (18). These observations have recently
been extended to humans with the demonstration that CTLA4Ig resulted in
only transient suppression of humoral responses to soluble Ags and did
not affect circulating lymphocyte counts in humans with psoriasis
(19). Furthermore, these two agents may exert their
beneficial effects on lupus by different mechanisms. CTLA4Ig
specifically inhibits T cell activation by blocking a specific
costimulatory interaction between APC and T cells (20).
CTX, in contrast, is cytotoxic to a range of immune cells, many of
which may have a role in the pathogenesis of lupus (12).
The current study was therefore undertaken to directly compare the
effects of CTLA4Ig and CTX on the course of murine lupus in B/W mice
and to determine whether any additional benefit might be obtained from
the concurrent use of both of these agents.
 |
Materials and Methods
|
|---|
Mice
B/W mice were purchased from The Jackson Laboratories (Bar
Harbor, ME) and were housed in the American Association for the
Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care-accredited animal care facility
at the San Francisco Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
Reagents
CTLA4Ig was provided by Robert Peach (Bristol-Myers Squibb); it
was produced by genetic fusion of the extracellular domain of CTLA4 and
the hinge, CH2 and CH3 regions of Ig C
1 as described previously
(21). CTX (Mead Johnson, Princeton, NJ) was reconstituted
in sterilized water.
Experimental design
At age 6 mo, 100 female B/W mice were divided into two groups
based upon their degree of renal disease. Group 1 had advanced renal
disease (proteinuria > 100 mg/dl) and group 2 had mild renal
disease (proteinuria < 100 mg/dl). Mice in each group were
treated for 16 wk with CTX (50 mg/kg i.p. every 10 days), CTLA4Ig (50
µg i.p. three times per week), or both CTX and CTLA4Ig (50 mg/kg i.p.
and 50 µg i.p. three times per week, respectively). An additional
group with mild disease received saline (three times per week i.p.) as
a control. Groups consisted of 14 mice per treatment in the advanced
disease group and 11 mice per treatment in the mild disease group. In a
subsequent study, a cohort of B/W females with advanced renal disease
was treated with these four regimens to evaluate the effects of
treatment on total lymphocyte counts and lymphocyte subsets.
Fluorescence analysis of lymphocyte subpopulations
Absolute lymphocyte counts on heparinized whole blood were
determined using a Technicon H1 automated cell counter (Technicon
Instruments, Tarrytown, NY). Cells from individual mice were analyzed
by flow cytometry as described previously (22). Cells were
stained with the following mAb: anti-CD3 (hybridoma 145-2C11),
anti-CD4 (hybridoma GK1.5), anti-CD8 (hybridoma 53-6), and
anti-B220 (hybridoma RA3-6B2).
Measurement of Abs
IgG Abs to dsDNA in sera from individual mice were measured by
an ELISA established in our laboratory previously
(22).
Assessment of renal disease
Renal disease was assessed by colorimetric measurement of
proteinuria using Uristix Ames Reagent Strips (Miles, Elkhart,
IN).
Statistical analysis
Mean Ab titers were compared using the Students t
test. Proteinuria and survival rates were compared by
-squared
analysis.
 |
Results
|
|---|
To examine the effects of CTLA4Ig and CTX on advanced lupus
nephritis, we treated 6-mo-old B/W females with advanced renal disease
(proteinuria >100 mg/dl) with CTX, CTLA4Ig, or both agents
concomitantly. This represented an especially sick cohort of mice, as
>80% of these mice had proteinuria
300 mg/dl (Fig. 1
). Mice treated with either CTX or
CTLA4Ig had no improvement in proteinuria. However, mice treated
simultaneously with both CTX and CTLA4Ig exhibited a rapid and marked
improvement in proteinuria. Within 3 wk the frequency of severe
proteinuria (
300 mg/dl) fell from 86% at baseline to 7% in mice
receiving both CTX and CTLA4Ig (Fig. 1
). In 10 of 14 mice, the level of
proteinuria not only fell below 300 mg/dl (3+), but below 100 mg/dl
(1+), reflecting at least a 67% reduction in proteinuria in individual
mice (data not shown). This dramatic improvement was sustained
throughout the course of treatment. Mice that received both agents also
had significantly lower titers of circulating anti-dsDNA Abs
compared with control mice and with mice that received either agent
alone. Furthermore, anti-dsDNA Ab levels actually decreased in
these mice after 12 wk of therapy (Table I
). Mice treated with both agents had
prolonged survival compared with the other treatment groups; 93% of
mice receiving combined treatment were alive after 14 wk of treatment
compared with only 36% in both the CTX alone and CTLA4Ig alone groups
(p < 0.05; Fig. 2
).
We also treated 6-mo-old B/W females with mild renal disease
(proteinuria <100 mg/dl) with either CTX, CTLA4Ig, both agents
concomitantly, or saline. Sixteen weeks after initiation of therapy,
80% of control mice had developed proteinuria
300 mg/dl, compared to
45% of CTLA4Ig-treated mice, 16% of mice treated with CTX alone, and
0% of mice treated with both CTX and CTLA4Ig (Fig. 3
). Although absolute titers of
anti-dsDNA Abs were lower in the CTX- and CTLA4Ig-alone groups,
statistically significant reduction in anti-DNA Abs was only
observed in mice treated with both CTLA4Ig and CTX (Table I
).
Interestingly, while there was no significant increase in dsDNA Ab
titer among mice treated with CTLA4Ig, either alone or in combination
with CTX, mice that received only CTX had an increase in dsDNA Ab
during treatment. This difference was also seen in mice with advanced
disease during treatment (Table I
). Survival was maintained during
treatment with either CTX or CTX plus CTLA4Ig (100%), and with CTLA4Ig
alone (92%), compared to 40% in control mice (Fig. 4
).
However, after treatment was stopped, there was progression of renal
disease and mortality in all treatment groups (Figs. 3
and 4
).
Progression of disease in the CTX-alone group was especially marked and
began soon after the last CTX dose (before week 16), such that by 20
wk, the percentage of CTX-treated mice with proteinuria
300 mg/dl was
similar to that in the CTLA4Ig group (54 vs 64%). In contrast, the
rate of progression of proteinuria in the combined treatment group was
lower (18% at week 20). Nevertheless, this delay in progression of
proteinuria among singly treated mice resulted in a prolongation in
survival. Eighteen weeks after cessation of treatment, 27% of
CTLA4Ig-treated mice, 36% of CTX-treated mice, and 54% of CTLA4Ig
plus CTX-treated mice survived, compared with 8% of controls
(Fig. 4
).
As a first step toward clarifying the mechanistic basis for the
apparent synergism between CTX and CTLA4Ig, we evaluated the effects of
therapy on circulating lymphocyte populations. In mice with mild or
advanced disease, CTX appeared to effect primarily B cells and CTLA4Ig
appeared to effect primarily CD4+ T cells (Fig. 5
). Specifically, CTX caused a
significant (>50%) decline in the absolute number of B cells, whether
it was administered alone or in combination with CTLA4Ig, but it did
not alter T cells counts. In contrast, CTLA4Ig, either alone or in
combination with CTX, caused a significant (>50%) rise in the
absolute number of CD4+ T cells, but did not alter B cell
counts. Neither CTX nor CTLA4Ig altered the numbers of CD8+
T cells (data not shown). The absolute lymphocyte counts were higher in
mice with mild renal disease (Fig. 5
, A and B),
consistent with previous studies that have established that progressive
lupus in B/W mice is accompanied by progressive lymphopenia.
 |
Discussion
|
|---|
This study demonstrates that the combination of CTLA4Ig and CTX is
an extremely effective treatment for active murine lupus nephritis.
Previous studies in B/W mice demonstrated that CTX is very effective in
treating murine lupus, especially lupus nephritis (1, 2, 3, 4).
Comparison studies in B/W mice (23) and humans
(24) established it as the most effective of various
immunosuppressive drugs commonly used in human SLE. When administered
to B/W mice at the onset of renal disease, CTX stopped the progression
of uremia and proteinuria and resulted in prolonged survival
(1). However, the incidence of uremia and proteinuria, and
the degree of kidney damage observed, remained unchanged from baseline
levels, indicating that CTX did not reverse existing changes (1, 2). Our results are consistent with these earlier observations;
CTX stabilized the level of disease at the level at which it was before
the start of treatment. Similarly, CTLA4Ig retarded progression of
renal disease, but did not reduce proteinuria. Thus, in this direct
comparison, both agents appear to have comparable efficacy in murine
lupus nephritis and result in a parallel improvement in survival.
However, despite similar efficacy as single agents, coadministration of
CTX and CTLA4Ig to B/W mice with severe proteinuria was clearly more
efficacious than either one alone, resulting in a rapid and sustained
reduction in proteinuria in mice with advanced kidney disease.
Recently, anti-CD40 ligand therapy in SNF1 lupus-prone
mice was shown to preserve kidney function in mice with established
nephritis (25). In that study, mice with mild to moderate
proteinuria at the start of treatment had some improvement in
proteinuria after receiving anti-CD40 ligand. This suggests that
other agents that interrupt T cell and APC costimulatory interactions
might also have increased efficacy when combined with CTX.
The benefit of combining these two agents may be due to both similar
and differing modes of action. CTX is an alkylating agent that damages
DNA repair mechanisms and is toxic to both resting and dividing cells,
although proliferating cells are generally more susceptible
(26). CTX has multiple effects on the immune system with
both immunosuppressive and apparent immunostimulatory effects
(15, 27). In contrast to these broad and relatively
nonspecific effects, CTLA4Ig specifically binds B7 molecules on APC
with high avidity, interrupting CD28-mediated costimulation of T cells
that have been activated via the TCR (21). In vitro,
CTLA4Ig blocks T cell-dependent responses (21) and can
result in Ag-specific unresponsiveness (28), suggesting
that some of its in vivo immunosuppressive effects may result from the
induction of Ag-specific tolerance. In vivo, CTLA4Ig suppresses
cell-mediated immune responses (29) and T cell-dependent
Ab responses (18).
In the current study, we found that these agents appear to have
differing effects on the development of autoantibodies. The progressive
increase in anti-dsDNA Abs observed in control mice was prevented
by CTLA4Ig, but not by CTX. We also observed different effects on
circulating lymphocyte subsets. CTX was more effective in reducing
peripheral B cell counts, consistent with previous descriptions of the
effect of CTX on peripheral B cells in mice and humans
(30). CTLA4Ig, in contrast, was associated with an
increase in CD4+ T cell counts, particularly in mice with
advanced disease. Although we did not observe a similar increase in
CD8+ T cells, the increase in CD4+ T cells may
reflect an improvement of lupus-induced lymphopenia, rather than a
specific proliferative effect on CD4+ T cells. In this
model, we are also not able to assess whether autoreactive T cells are
rendered anergic by this therapy. Taken together, however, these
findings support the hypothesis that the benefit of combining these two
agents is the result of different, complementary actions.
Overall, we found that CTLA4Ig is comparable in efficacy to CTX for the
treatment of murine lupus nephritis in both early and advanced stages
of disease. Thus, in the same model in which the effectiveness of CTX
for lupus nephritis was first demonstrated, administration of an agent
that blocks T cell costimulation has similar efficacy to CTX, the agent
currently most widely used to treat human lupus nephritis. Furthermore,
we found that the effects of these agents are complementary when used
together. Combining CTLA4Ig with CTX resulted in a dramatic reduction
in proteinuria, which is unprecedented in this model. The observed
synergistic benefit of combining these agents, which was most apparent
once renal disease was advanced, also suggests that these two
immunosuppressants have differing mechanisms of action in lupus
nephritis. These results therefore suggest the possibility for new
treatment strategies for human SLE, which might serve to reduce some of
the toxicities of CTX while maintaining, or even improving
efficacy.
 |
Acknowledgments
|
|---|
We thank Elizabeth Kaufman for valuable technical assistance and
Robert Peach of Bristol-Myers Squibb for the generous provision of
CTLA4Ig.
 |
Footnotes
|
|---|
1 This work was supported in part by grants from the
Department of Veterans Affairs, the National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Disease, and by the Rosalind Russell Medical Research Center
for Arthritis at the University of California at San Francisco. 
2 Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. David I. Daikh, Arthritis/Immunology Section 111R, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 4150 Clement Street, San Francisco, CA 94121. 
3 Abbreviations used in this paper: SLE, systemic lupus erythematosus; B/W (NZB x NZW)F1; CTX, cyclophosphamide. 
 |
References
|
|---|
-
Russell, P. J., J. D. Hicks, F. M. Burnet. 1966. Cyclophosphamide treatment of kidney disease in (NZB x NZW) F1 mice. Lancet 1:1280.[Medline]
-
Russell, P. J., J. D. Hicks. 1968. Cyclophosphamide treatment of renal disease in (NZB x NZW) F1 hybrid mice. Lancet 1:440.[Medline]
-
Casey, T. P.. 1968. Immunosuppression by cyclophosphamide in NZB x NZW mice with lupus nephritis. Blood 32:436.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
-
Hurd, E. R.. 1977. Effect of cyclophosphamide on interstitial nephritis and tubule cell proliferation in NZB/NZW mice. J. Immunol. 119:1552.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
-
Boumpas, D. T., H. A. d. Austin, E. M. Vaughn, J. H. Klippel, A. D. Steinberg, C. H. Yarboro, J. E. Balow. 1992. Controlled trial of pulse methylprednisolone versus two regimens of pulse cyclophosphamide in severe lupus nephritis. Lancet 340:741.[Medline]
-
Jacob, C. O., H. O. McDevitt. 1988. Tumour necrosis factor-
in murine autoimmune lupus nephritis. Nature 331:356.[Medline]
-
Wofsy, D., N. L. Carteron. 1990. CD4 antibody therapy in systemic lupus erythematosus. Semin. Immunol. 2:419.[Medline]
-
Ishida, H., T. Muchamuel, S. Sakaguchi, S. Andrade, S. Menon, M. Howard. 1994. Continuous administration of anti-interleukin 10 antibodies delays onset of autoimmunity in NZB/W F1 mice. J. Exp. Med. 179:305.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
-
Finck, B. K., B. Chan, D. Wofsy. 1994. Interleukin 6 promotes murine lupus in NZB/NZW F1 mice. J. Clin. Invest. 94:585.
-
Ozmen, L., D. Roman, M. Fountoulakis, G. Schmid, B. Ryffel, G. Garotta. 1995. Experimental therapy of systemic lupus erythematosus: the treatment of NZB/W mice with mouse soluble interferon-gamma receptor inhibits the onset of glomerulonephritis. Eur. J. Immunol. 25:6.[Medline]
-
Finck, B. K., P. S. Linsley, D. Wofsy. 1994. Treatment of murine lupus with CTLA4Ig. Science 265:1225.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
-
McCune, W. J., J. Golbus, W. Zeldes, P. Bohlke, R. Dunne, D. A. Fox. 1988. Clinical and immunologic effects of monthly administration of intravenous cyclophosphamide in severe systemic lupus erythematosus. N. Engl. J. Med. 318:1423.[Abstract]
-
Moutsopoulos, H. M., J. D. Gallagher, J. L. Decker, A. D. Steinberg. 1978. Herpes zoster in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. Arthritis Rheum. 21:789.[Medline]
-
Hellmann, D. B., M. Petri, Q. Whiting-OKeefe. 1987. Fatal infections in systemic lupus erythematosus: the role of opportunistic organisms. Medicine 66:341.[Medline]
-
Miller, J. J. d., G. F. Williams, J. C. Leissring. 1971. Multiple late complications of therapy with cyclophosphamide, including ovarian destruction. Am. J. Med. 50:530.[Medline]
-
Fairley, K. F., J. U. Barrie, W. Johnson. 1972. Sterility and testicular atrophy related to cyclophosphamide therapy. Lancet 1:568.[Medline]
-
Baker, G. L., L. E. Kahl, B. C. Zee, B. L. Stolzer, A. K. Agarwal, Jr T. A. Medsger. 1987. Malignancy following treatment of rheumatoid arthritis with cyclophosphamide. Long-term case-control follow-up study. Am. J. Med. 83:1.[Medline]
-
Linsley, P. S., P. M. Wallace, J. Johnson, M. G. Gibson, J. L. Greene, J. A. Ledbetter, C. Singh, M. A. Tepper. 1992. Immunosuppression in vivo by a soluble form of the CTLA-4 T cell activation molecule. Science 257:792.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
-
Abrams, J. R., M. G. Lebwohl, C. A. Guzzo, B. V. Jegasothy, M. T. Goldfarb, B. S. Goffe, A. Menter, N. J. Lowe, G. Krueger, M. J. Brown, et al 1999. CTLA4Ig-mediated blockade of T-cell costimulation in patients with psoriasis vulgaris. J. Clin. Invest. 103:1243.[Medline]
-
Bluestone, J. A.. 1995. New perspectives of CD28B7-mediated T cell costimulation. Immunity 2:555.[Medline]
-
Linsley, P. S., W. Brady, M. Urnes, L. S. Grosmaire, N. K. Damle, J. A. Ledbetter. 1991. CTLA-4 is a second receptor for the B cell activation antigen B7. J. Exp. Med. 174:561.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
-
Wofsy, D., W. E. Seaman. 1985. Successful treatment of autoimmunity in NZB/NZW F1 mice with monoclonal antibody to L3T4. J. Exp. Med. 161:378.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
-
Gelfand, M. C., A. D. Steinberg. 1972. Therapeutic studies in NZB-W mice. II. Relative efficacy of azathioprine, cyclophosphamide and methylprednisolone. Arthritis Rheum. 15:247.[Medline]
-
Austin, H. A. d., J. H. Klippel, J. E. Balow, N. G. le Riche, A. D. Steinberg, P. H. Plotz, J. L. Decker. 1986. Therapy of lupus nephritis: controlled trial of prednisone and cytotoxic drugs. N. Engl. J. Med. 314:614.[Abstract]
-
Kalled, S. L., A. H. Cutler, S. K. Datta, D. W. Thomas. 1998. Anti-CD40 ligand antibody treatment of SNF1 mice with established nephritis: preservation of kidney function. J. Immunol. 160:2158.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
-
Luqmani, R. A., R. G. Palmer, P. A. Bacon. 1990. Azathioprine, cyclophosphamide and chlorambucil. Baillieres Clin. Rheumatol. 4:595.[Medline]
-
Turk, J. L., D. Parker. 1979. The effect of cyclophosphamide on the immune response. J. Immunopharmacol. 1:127.[Medline]
-
Wallace, P. M., J. N. Rodgers, G. M. Leytze, J. S. Johnson, P. S. Linsley. 1995. Induction and reversal of long-lived specific unresponsiveness to a T-dependent antigen following CTLA4Ig treatment. J. Immunol. 154:5885.[Abstract]
-
Baliga, P., K. D. Chavin, L. Qin, J. Woodward, J. Lin, P. S. Linsley, J. S. Bromberg. 1994. CTLA4Ig prolongs allograft survival while suppressing cell-mediated immunity. Transplantation 58:1082.[Medline]
-
Bast, R. C., E. L. Reinherz, C. Maver, P. Lavin, S. F. Schlossman. 1982. Contrasting effects of cyclophosphamide and prednisone on the phenotype of human peripheral blood leukocytes. Clin. Immunol. Immunopath. 28:101.
This article has been cited by other articles:

|
 |

|
 |
 
C. Chaudhury, J. Kim, S. Mehnaz, M. A. Wani, T. M. Oberyszyn, C. L. Bronson, S. Mohanty, W. L. Hayton, J. M. Robinson, and C. L. Anderson
Accelerated Transferrin Degradation in HFE-Deficient Mice Is Associated with Increased Transferrin Saturation
J. Nutr.,
December 1, 2006;
136(12):
2993 - 2998.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
G. C. Zeller, J. Hirahashi, A. Schwarting, A. H. Sharpe, and V. R. Kelley
Inducible Co-Stimulator Null MRL-Faslpr Mice: Uncoupling of Autoantibodies and T Cell Responses in Lupus
J. Am. Soc. Nephrol.,
January 1, 2006;
17(1):
122 - 130.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
A Davidson, B Diamond, D Wofsy, and D Daikh
Block and tackle: CTLA4Ig takes on lupus
Lupus,
March 1, 2005;
14(3):
197 - 203.
[Abstract]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
H Tahir and D A Isenberg
Novel therapies in lupus nephritis
Lupus,
January 1, 2005;
14(1):
77 - 82.
[Abstract]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
M Dall'Era and J Davis
CTLA4Ig: a novel inhibitor of costimulation
Lupus,
May 1, 2004;
13(5):
372 - 376.
[Abstract]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
A. Bhattacharya, R. A. Lawrence, A. Krishnan, K. Zaman, D. Sun, and G. Fernandes
Effect of Dietary n-3 and n-6 Oils with and without Food Restriction on Activity of Antioxidant Enzymes and Lipid Peroxidation in Livers of Cyclophosphamide Treated Autoimmune-Prone NZB/W Female Mice
J. Am. Coll. Nutr.,
October 1, 2003;
22(5):
388 - 399.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
C C Mok, R W S Wong, and K N Lai
Treatment of severe proliferative lupus nephritis: the current state
Ann Rheum Dis,
September 1, 2003;
62(9):
799 - 804.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
L. Schiffer, J. Sinha, X. Wang, W. Huang, G. von Gonsdorff, M. Schiffer, M. P. Madaio, and A. Davidson
Short Term Administration of Costimulatory Blockade and Cyclophosphamide Induces Remission of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Nephritis in NZB/W F1 Mice by a Mechanism Downstream of Renal Immune Complex Deposition
J. Immunol.,
July 1, 2003;
171(1):
489 - 497.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
A. DAVIDSON, X. WANG, M. MIHARA, M. RAMANUJAM, W. HUANG, L. SCHIFFER, and J. SINHA
Co-Stimulatory Blockade in the Treatment of Murine Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE)
Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci.,
April 1, 2003;
987(1):
188 - 198.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
K. Balabanian, J. Couderc, L. Bouchet-Delbos, A. Amara, D. Berrebi, A. Foussat, F. Baleux, A. Portier, I. Durand-Gasselin, R. L. Coffman, et al.
Role of the Chemokine Stromal Cell-Derived Factor 1 in Autoantibody Production and Nephritis in Murine Lupus
J. Immunol.,
March 15, 2003;
170(6):
3392 - 3400.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
L E Schiffer, N Hussain, X Wang, W Huang, J Sinha, M Ramanujam, and A Davidson
Lowering anti-dsDNA antibodies--what's new?
Lupus,
December 1, 2002;
11(12):
885 - 894.
[Abstract]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
B H Hahn
Lessons in lupus: the mighty mouse
Lupus,
September 1, 2001;
10(9):
589 - 593.
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
A. Davidson and B. Diamond
Autoimmune Diseases
N. Engl. J. Med.,
August 2, 2001;
345(5):
340 - 350.
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|