NCT04361734

The Role of Lipids in Immune Cell Function in SLE Patients

Understanding the Role Played by Serum and Membrane Lipids in Immune Cell Function in Patients With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and Healthy Donors

• Status: Unknown
• Phase: —
• Study type: Observational
• Enrollment: 300 (estimated)
• Sponsor: University College, London · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years – 80 Years
• Healthy volunteers: —

Summary

The overall aim of this project is to investigate the different types of immune cells found in the blood of patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and healthy donors. We know that the amount of fat on the surface of immune cells is an important factor controlling their behaviour. Immune cells from SLE patients are defective and this is associated with changes in the levels of fat on these cells. This project will investigate the level of fat in the blood and on immune cells from patients with SLE and age matched healthy controls, and measure how changes in the amount of fat can affect the way immune cells behave.

Detailed description

Accelerated atherosclerosis is a serious complication of autoimmunity including patients with both adult and juvenile onset systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). This suggests that defects in fat levels could contribute to disease pathogenesis. The immune system in patients with SLE does not work normally. In adult patients with SLE we know that many of the immune cells involved in protecting the body from infections or cancer are over-active and actually cause disease. In young people the immune system is still developing and very little is known about what goes wrong in patients that develop juvenile-onset SLE, whether this is the same as adult disease and whether the same treatments are relevant for this group of patients. This project aims to find out whether immune cells from SLE patients with adult-onset disease have the same defects as adult patients with juvenile-onset SLE. We know that an important factor that controls immune cell behaviour is the amount of fat that they have on their surface. We also know that a change in fat on immune cells from adult patients with SLE makes them defective. This project will investigate the level of fat in the blood and in immune cells from adult patients with juvenile-onset SLE and age matched healthy controls, and measure how changes in the amount of fat can affect the way immune cells behave. We will investigate how drugs that control fat levels can help to normalize the behaviour of immune cells from SLE patients.

Conditions

• Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Blood sampling to include Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) and Ribonucleic Acid (RNA)	* Blood sampling to measure immune cell phenotypes and examine DNA/RNA and identify serum biomarkers. * Food Frequency Questionnaires (FFQs) and/or diet recall questionnaires to assess dietary intake. * Cardiovascular Ultrasound Scans (USS) to measure how well blood is carried around the body.

Timeline

• Start date: 2016-02-15
• Primary completion: 2020-08-31
• Completion: 2020-08-31
• First posted: 2020-04-24
• Last updated: 2020-04-24

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United Kingdom