Urinary TWEAK level as a marker of lupus nephritis activity in 46 cases.
OBJECTIVE
This study is designed to observe the urinary tumor necrosis factor-like weak inducer of apoptosis (TWEAK) levels in patients with lupus nephritis (LN) and to identify new biomarker of lupus nephritis activity.


METHODS
Study subjects were 46 cases of patients with LN (including 34 of active cases) who underwent routine renal biopsy. Activity and chronicity indexes of LN were assessed using pathological criteria proposed by Hill et al. in 2000. Urinary TWEAK (uTWEAK) level and Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) level were detected by ELISA.


RESULTS
Urinary TWEAK level was significantly higher in active LN group than in non-active LN group. Correlation analysis showed that urinary TWEAK levels were significantly correlated with activity index (r = 0.825, P < 0.01), glomerular activity index (r = 0.754, P < 0.01), and tubulointerstitial qualitative activity index (r = 0.751, P < 0.01), while not significant correlated with chronicity Index (P > 0.05). The association between urinary TWEAK levels and urinary MCP-1 levels were significant in active LN group (r = 0.809, P < 0.01) but not significant in non-active LN group (P > 0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
uWEAK levels were correlated with all active indexes of LN, suggesting its potential role as novel biomarker of active lupus nephritis.
Division of Nephrology, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410011, China.
Zhu
Z
Xuejing
Tan
T
Jiazhen
Li
L
Jun
Xu
X
Xiangqing
Yuan
Y
Shuguang
Liu
L
Fuyou
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000652:urine; D001706:Biopsy; D018932:Chemokine CCL2 / Q000652:urine; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D000074049:Cytokine TWEAK; D005260:Female; D006651:Histocytochemistry; D006801:Humans; D007668:Kidney / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology; D008181:Lupus Nephritis / Q000652:urine*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D048069:Tumor Necrosis Factors / Q000652:urine*
D015415:Biomarkers; D018932:Chemokine CCL2; D000074049:Cytokine TWEAK; C109743:TNFSF12 protein, human; D048069:Tumor Necrosis Factors