Cambridge research news link: Too Exhausted to Fight & Do Harm

[Barnclown]

I've been reading the article you can find via the link below...and think I more or less understand it. My impression is that the insights these researchers are gaining go some way to explaining the great variation between individual versions of lupus...and also, how some types of immunodeficiency (exhausted T cells) can somewhat reduce the severity of an individual's version of lupus...So if T cell exhaustion does play this major role in determining outcomes in autoimmune conditions like lupus, then research into specific treatments targeting this process could give us a new set of lupus treatments.....but see what you think:

cam.ac.uk/research/news/too...

[RichardE]

Interesting. Thanks BC.

I'll cross post this to the Vasculitis group, since I think T cells can play a part in quite a few types of vasculitis as well.

[Barnclown in reply to RichardE]

Yes indeed: my impression is that these researchers are thinking about autoimmune conditions generally.

you're v welcome, richard

[misty14]

Hi Barnclown

Thanks for sharing such an interesting article. For once we can be pleased to have exhausted T cells as illness is milder!. You'd think it would be the other way around!. Does give good hope for future treatments which we can all do with!. Take Care X

[Barnclown in reply to misty14]

Am laughing: a nice way to start the day: thanks misty: I totally agree with you! XO

[Barnclown]

Hmmm....am wondering if this T cell exhaustion could be one reason why inflammatory markers can decrease with age in some autoimmune patients....?

[PeaJay]

I was just thinking that! Thank you for sharing this, Barnclown. Lupus is a huge pile of jigsaw pieces and I'm sure that in small but important ways we can or will help the medical professionals fit them together and improve our own understanding of the disease process.

Yesterday I was researching why some of us get elevated IgM and reduced IgG when our lupus condition is stable. I found it fairly indigestible as I don't have any medical background, but it throws up ideas we can think about: it was suggested that one possible reason for high IgM is that it may be a response to an acute infection encountered earlier in life and is then amplified by the ensuing autoimmunity (how many of us had glandular fever for example?). Apparently IgM has a long memory and may protect us against more severe organ damage. So out of the normal range blood results may not be all bad news!

[Barnclown in reply to PeaJay]

Thanks for replying peajay...so far I've found v few who are trying to understand Igs. I'm low in G, M & A. Your comments are v interesting.

There is a v good website that has helped me with this, maybe you know it already:

piduk.org/whatarepids/basics

Take care🍀

[PeaJay in reply to Barnclown]

What an approachable web site!

Thanks!