Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39959130›Full record

ArticleRheumatology advances in practice2025

Complement proteins in axial spondyloarthritis: associations with disease activity and TNFi treatment response in a multicentre RCT.

Clara Mistegaard, Anne Troldborg, Murat Torgutalp, Anne Gitte Loft, Steffen Thiel, Burkhard Muche, Valeria Rios Rodriguez, Mikhail Protopopov, Joachim Listing, Joachim Sieper and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Rheumatology advances in practice, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Trial
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Clara MistegaardDepartment of Rheumatology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6359-2192
Anne TroldborgDepartment of Rheumatology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9501-1268
Murat TorgutalpDepartment of Gastroenterology, Infectiology and Rheumatology (including Nutrition Medicine), Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4600-9484
Anne Gitte LoftDepartment of Rheumatology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6374-841X
Steffen ThielDepartment of Biomedicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4817-155X
Burkhard MucheDepartment of Gastroenterology, Infectiology and Rheumatology (including Nutrition Medicine), Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4104-5080
Valeria Rios RodriguezDepartment of Gastroenterology, Infectiology and Rheumatology (including Nutrition Medicine), Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5612-043X
Mikhail ProtopopovDepartment of Gastroenterology, Infectiology and Rheumatology (including Nutrition Medicine), Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4840-5069
Joachim ListingDepartment of Gastroenterology, Infectiology and Rheumatology (including Nutrition Medicine), Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
Joachim SieperDepartment of Gastroenterology, Infectiology and Rheumatology (including Nutrition Medicine), Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0285-9890
Denis PoddubnyyDepartment of Gastroenterology, Infectiology and Rheumatology (including Nutrition Medicine), Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4537-6015
Fabian ProftDepartment of Gastroenterology, Infectiology and Rheumatology (including Nutrition Medicine), Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4306-033X

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate lectin pathway proteins (LPPs) and complement activation marker C3dg as biomarkers for disease activity and treatment response in a multicentre, randomized controlled trial of axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) patients initiating TNF inhibitor (TNFi) therapy. Methods: Serum samples from 108 patients with active radiographic axSpA from the CONSUL study, collected before and after 12 weeks of TNFi therapy, were measured using immunoassays for LPPs (MBL, CL-L1, M-, L-, and H-ficolin, MASP-1, -2, and -3, MAp44) and the complement activation marker C3dg. Results: After 12 weeks of TNFi therapy, serum levels of LPPs L-ficolin, M-ficolin, and MASP-2 decreased, while MASP-3 increased after adjustment for baseline CRP. Baseline L-ficolin levels correlated positively with baseline ASDAS-CRP and BASFI. C3dg correlated positively with ASDAS-CRP. Conversely, MASP-1 and MAp44 correlated negatively with ASDAS-CRP. Assessed by univariate logistic regression, C3dg and MASP-1 were associated with treatment response of clinically important improvement (ΔASDAS-CRP ≥1.1) and inactive disease (ASDAS-CRP <1.3) at week 12, respectively. Only C3dg remained significant in a multivariate regression analysis. Conclusion: In this study, complement LPPs L-ficolin, M-ficolin, and MASP-2 levels decrease following initiation of TNFi therapy, whereas alternative pathway critical component MASP-3 increases. Baseline L-ficolin and C3dg correlated positively with ASDAS-CRP, potentially by CRP influence. Nevertheless, baseline C3dg levels were associated with treatment response (ASDAS-CRP <1.3) at week 12. Our results provide important perspectives on the inflammatory processes in axSpA, shedding light on the involvement of the complement system related to disease activity, treatment response, and potentially to prognosis.

Indexed as

axial spondyloarthritisbiomarkercomplement activationlectin pathwaytumour necrosis inhibitor therapy

Identifiers

PMID39959130
PMCPMC11825385

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.