Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41890720›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in immunology2026

Complement and autoantibody levels under anifrolumab therapy in SLE: implications for clinical practice.

Jan-Gerd Rademacher, Björn Tampe, Peter Korsten

Abstract read
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Article in Frontiers in immunology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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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

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3 · Its place in the literature

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0 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Jan-Gerd RademacherDepartment of Nephrology and Rheumatology, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.
Björn TampeDepartment of Nephrology and Rheumatology, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.
Peter KorstenDepartment of Nephrology and Rheumatology, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: Anifrolumab (ANI), a type I interferon receptor antagonist, has demonstrated clinical efficacy in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). However, its effects on serological markers commonly used to assess disease activity in clinical practice remain uncertain. This study evaluated changes in complement and autoantibody levels in SLE patients treated with ANI under routine care conditions. Methods: We performed a single-center retrospective analysis of SLE patients receiving ≥3 ANI infusions over a 12-month period. Clinical and serological data, including complement (C3c, C4), anti-double-stranded DNA (anti-dsDNA) antibodies, prednisone dose, and SLE Disease Activity Index 2000 (SLEDAI-2K) scores, were analyzed using mixed-effects modeling (REML). Correlations between changes in clinical SLEDAI-2K (excluding serological components) and serological markers were assessed. Results: Thirteen patients (84.6% female, median age 53 years) were included. The median baseline SLEDAI-2K was 10, and 76.9% exhibited abnormal complement and/or anti-dsDNA levels. Over the treatment course (median 12 infusions), 76.9% of patients improved clinically, with a mean SLEDAI-2K reduction of 3.77 ± 2.78 points (p < 0.001). Prednisone doses decreased in 38.5% of cases. Complement (C3c, p = 0.25; C4, p = 0.10) and anti-dsDNA levels (p = 0.12) remained largely unchanged. No correlations were observed between clinical SLEDAI-2K improvement and serological parameters. Discussion: Anifrolumab therapy led to significant clinical improvement without corresponding serological changes, suggesting that traditional biomarkers may not adequately reflect therapeutic response. Monitoring under ANI should therefore emphasize clinical rather than serological parameters. These findings have implications for interpreting composite disease activity indices incorporating immunological markers in SLE management depending on the mechanism of action of a particular treatment.

Indexed as

Antibodies, Monoclonal, HumanizedAutoantibodiesComplement System ProteinsLupus Erythematosus, SystemicAdultAgedAntibodies, AntinuclearBiomarkersFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPrednisoneRetrospective StudiesTreatment OutcomeanifrolumabAntibodies, AntinuclearAntibodies, Monoclonal, HumanizedAutoantibodiesBiomarkersComplement System ProteinsPrednisoneantibodiescomplementinterferonSLEDAIsystemic lupus erythematosus

Identifiers

PMID41890720
PMCPMC13013301

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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.