1 4958 92 PATHOGENESIS OF HUMAN SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS: A CELLULAR PERSPECTIVE. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS A CHRONIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE AFFECTING MULTIPLE ORGANS. A COMPLEX INTERACTION OF GENETICS, ENVIRONMENT, AND HORMONES LEADS TO IMMUNE DYSREGULATION AND BREAKDOWN OF TOLERANCE TO SELF-ANTIGENS, RESULTING IN AUTOANTIBODY PRODUCTION, INFLAMMATION, AND DESTRUCTION OF END-ORGANS. EMERGING EVIDENCE ON THE ROLE OF THESE FACTORS HAS INCREASED OUR KNOWLEDGE OF THIS COMPLEX DISEASE, GUIDING THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES AND IDENTIFYING PUTATIVE BIOMARKERS. RECENT FINDINGS INCLUDE THE CHARACTERIZATION OF GENETIC/EPIGENETIC FACTORS LINKED TO SLE, AS WELL AS CELLULAR EFFECTORS. NOVEL OBSERVATIONS HAVE PROVIDED AN IMPROVED UNDERSTANDING OF THE CONTRIBUTION OF TISSUE-SPECIFIC FACTORS AND ASSOCIATED DAMAGE, T AND B LYMPHOCYTES, AS WELL AS INNATE IMMUNE CELL SUBSETS AND THEIR CORRESPONDING ABNORMALITIES. THE INTRICATE WEB OF INVOLVED FACTORS AND PATHWAYS DICTATES THE ADOPTION OF TAILORED THERAPEUTIC APPROACHES TO CONQUER THIS DISEASE. 2017 2 3545 29 IMMUNOMETABOLISM IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS A TYPICAL AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE CHARACTERIZED BY CHRONIC INFLAMMATION AND PATHOGENIC AUTO-ANTIBODIES. APART FROM B CELLS, DYSREGULATION OF OTHER IMMUNE CELLS ALSO PLAYS AN ESSENTIAL ROLE IN THE PATHOGENESIS AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE DISEASE INCLUDING CD4(+)T CELLS, DENDRITIC CELLS, MACROPHAGES AND NEUTROPHILS. SINCE METABOLIC PROGRAMS CONTROL IMMUNE CELL FATE AND FUNCTION, THEY ARE CRITICAL CHECKPOINTS IN AN EFFECTIVE IMMUNE RESPONSE AND ARE INVOLVED IN THE ETIOLOGY OF AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE. IN ADDITION, MITOCHONDRIA AND OXIDATIVE STRESS ARE BOTH INVOLVED IN CELLULAR METABOLISM AND IS ALSO ESSENTIAL IN IMMUNE RESPONSE. IN THIS REVIEW, APART FROM THE DISTURBED IMMUNE SYSTEM, WE WILL DISCUSS MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, OXIDATIVE STRESS, ABNORMAL METABOLISM (INCLUDING GLUCOSE, LIPID AND AMINO ACID METABOLISM) OF IMMUNE CELLS AS WELL AS EPIGENETIC CONTROL OF METABOLISM REPROGRAMMING TO ELUCIDATE THE UNDERLYING PATHOGENIC MECHANISMS OF SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS. 2020 3 549 26 AUTOANTIGENS: NOVEL FORMS AND PRESENTATION TO THE IMMUNE SYSTEM. IT IS CLEAR THAT LUPUS AUTOIMMUNITY IS MARKED BY A VARIETY OF ABNORMALITIES, INCLUDING THOSE FOUND AT A MACROSCOPIC SCALE, CELLS AND TISSUES, AS WELL AS MORE MICROENVIRONMENTAL INFLUENCES, ORIGINATING AT THE INDIVIDUAL CELL SURFACE THROUGH TO THE NUCLEUS. THE CONVERGENCE OF GENETIC, EPIGENETIC, AND PERHAPS ENVIRONMENTAL INFLUENCES ALL LEAD TO THE OVERT CLINICAL EXPRESSION OF DISEASE, REFLECTED BY THE PRESENCES OF AUTOANTIBODIES AND TISSUE PATHOLOGY. THIS REVIEW WILL ADDRESS SEVERAL SPECIFIC AREAS THAT FALL AMONG THE NON-GENETIC FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO LUPUS AUTOIMMUNITY AND RELATED SYNDROMES. IN PARTICULAR, WE WILL DISCUSS THE IMPORTANCE OF UNDERSTANDING VARIOUS PROTEIN POST-TRANSLATIONAL MODIFICATIONS (PTMS), MECHANISMS THAT MEDIATE THE ABILITY OF "MODIFIED SELF" TO TRIGGER AUTOIMMUNITY, AND HOW THESE PTMS INFLUENCE LUPUS DIAGNOSIS. FINALLY, WE WILL DISCUSS ALTERED PATHWAYS OF AUTOANTIGEN PRESENTATION THAT MAY CONTRIBUTE TO THE PERPETUATION OF CHRONIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE. 2014 4 398 37 AN UPDATE ON GENETIC SUSCEPTIBILITY IN LUPUS NEPHRITIS. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS A CHRONIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE CHARACTERIZED BY MULTIPLE SYSTEM INVOLVEMENT AND POSITIVE SERUM AUTOANTIBODIES. LUPUS NEPHRITIS (LN) IS THE MOST COMMON AND SERIOUS COMPLICATION OF SLE, AND IT IS THE MAIN CAUSE OF DEATH IN PATIENTS WITH SLE. ABNORMALITIES IN THE IMMUNE SYSTEM LEAD TO LN AND INVOLVE A VARIETY OF CELLS (T CELLS, B CELLS, MACROPHAGES, NK CELLS, ETC.), CYTOKINES (INTERLEUKIN, TUMOR NECROSIS FACTOR ALPHA, ETC.) AND THEIR RELATED PATHWAYS. PREVIOUS STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT THE INTERACTIONS OF GENETIC, EPIGENETIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS CONTRIBUTE TO THE PATHOGENESIS AND DEVELOPMENT OF LN. IN RECENT YEARS, ONE GENOME-WIDE ASSOCIATION STUDY (GWAS) AND A NUMBER OF GENE ASSOCIATION STUDIES HAVE EXPLORED THE SUSCEPTIBILITY GENES OF LN, INCLUDING IMMUNIZATION-, INFLAMMATION-, ADHESION- AND OTHER PATHWAY-RELATED GENES. THESE GENES PARTICIPATE IN OR SUGGEST THE PATHOGENESIS AND PROGRESSION OF LN. IN THIS REVIEW, WE SUMMARIZE THE GENETIC SUSCEPTIBILITY OF LN AND DISCUSS THE POSSIBLE MECHANISM UNDERLYING THE SUSCEPTIBILITY GENES OF LN. 2020 5 2257 30 EPIGENETIC PERSPECTIVES IN SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS: PATHOGENESIS, BIOMARKERS, AND THERAPEUTIC POTENTIALS. SYSTEM LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS A CHRONIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE CHARACTERIZED BY THE PRODUCTION OF AUTOANTIBODIES THAT CAUSE WIDESPREAD TISSUE DAMAGE. THE UNDERLYING ETIOLOGY REMAINS LARGELY UNKNOWN. ABERRANT EPIGENETICS PLAYS ESSENTIAL ROLES IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF SLE. THIS REVIEW EXPLORES THE LINKS BETWEEN DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATIONS, AND MIRNAS IN SLE AND HIGHLIGHTS HOW THESE FACTORS MAY INTERACT IN SLE PATHOGENESIS. WE ALSO DISCUSS HOW FURTHERING OUR KNOWLEDGE OF EPIGENETICS IN LUPUS PROVIDES HOPE FOR FINDING NEW DIAGNOSTIC AND PROGNOSTIC BIOMARKERS AND NOVEL THERAPEUTIC TARGETS AND STRATEGIES. 2010 6 6194 36 THE IMPACT OF PROTEIN ACETYLATION/DEACETYLATION ON SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS A CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE IN WHICH THE BODY'S IMMUNE SYSTEM MISTAKENLY ATTACKS HEALTHY CELLS. ALTHOUGH THE EXACT CAUSE OF SLE HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED, IT IS CLEAR THAT BOTH GENETICS AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS TRIGGER THE DISEASE. IDENTICAL TWINS HAVE A 24% CHANCE OF GETTING LUPUS DISEASE IF THE OTHER ONE IS AFFECTED. INTERNAL FACTORS SUCH AS FEMALE GENDER AND SEX HORMONES, THE MAJOR HISTOCOMPATIBILITY COMPLEX (MHC) LOCUS AND OTHER GENETIC POLYMORPHISMS HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO AFFECT SLE, AS WELL AS EXTERNAL, ENVIRONMENTAL INFLUENCES SUCH AS SUNLIGHT EXPOSURE, SMOKING, VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY, AND CERTAIN INFECTIONS. SEVERAL STUDIES HAVE REPORTED AND PROPOSED MULTIPLE ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN THE ALTERATION OF THE EPIGENOME AND THE PATHOGENESIS OF AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE. EPIGENETIC FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO SLE INCLUDE MICRORNAS, DNA METHYLATION STATUS, AND THE ACETYLATION/DEACETYLATION OF HISTONE PROTEINS. ADDITIONALLY, THE ACETYLATION OF NON-HISTONE PROTEINS CAN ALSO INFLUENCE CELLULAR FUNCTION. A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF NON-GENOMIC FACTORS THAT REGULATE SLE WILL PROVIDE INSIGHT INTO THE MECHANISMS THAT INITIATE AND FACILITATE DISEASE AND ALSO CONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF NOVEL THERAPEUTICS THAT CAN SPECIFICALLY TARGET PATHOGENIC MOLECULAR PATHWAYS. 2018 7 6178 29 THE HISTONE MODIFICATION CODE IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES. AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES ARE CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISORDERS CAUSED BY A LOSS OF SELF-TOLERANCE, WHICH IS CHARACTERIZED BY THE APPEARANCE OF AUTOANTIBODIES AND/OR AUTOREACTIVE LYMPHOCYTES AND THE IMPAIRED SUPPRESSIVE FUNCTION OF REGULATORY T CELLS. THE PATHOGENESIS OF AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES IS EXTREMELY COMPLEX AND REMAINS LARGELY UNKNOWN. RECENT ADVANCES INDICATE THAT ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS TRIGGER AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES IN GENETICALLY PREDISPOSED INDIVIDUALS. IN ADDITION, ACCUMULATING RESULTS HAVE INDICATED A POTENTIAL ROLE OF EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS, SUCH AS HISTONE MODIFICATIONS, IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES. HISTONE MODIFICATIONS REGULATE THE CHROMATIN STATES AND GENE TRANSCRIPTION WITHOUT ANY CHANGE IN THE DNA SEQUENCE, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN PHENOTYPE ALTERATION IN SEVERAL DIFFERENT CELL TYPES. IN THIS PAPER, WE DISCUSS THE SIGNIFICANT ROLES OF HISTONE MODIFICATIONS INVOLVED IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES, INCLUDING RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS, SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS, SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS, PRIMARY BILIARY CIRRHOSIS, AND TYPE 1 DIABETES. 2017 8 6107 34 THE EMERGING ROLE OF NONCODING RNAS IN SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS: NEW INSIGHTS INTO THE MASTER REGULATORS OF DISEASE PATHOGENESIS. AUTO-IMMUNE DISEASES ARE A FORM OF CHRONIC DISORDERS IN WHICH THE IMMUNE SYSTEM DESTROYS THE BODY'S CELLS DUE TO A LOSS OF TOLERANCE TO SELF-ANTIGENS. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE), IDENTIFIED BY THE PRODUCTION OF AUTOANTIBODIES IN DIFFERENT BODY PARTS, IS ONE OF THE MOST WELL-KNOWN EXAMPLES OF THESE DISEASES. ALTHOUGH THE ETIOLOGY OF SLE IS UNCLEAR, THE DISEASE'S PROGRESSION MAY BE AFFECTED BY GENETIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS. AS STUDIES IN TWINS PROVIDE ADEQUATE EVIDENCE FOR GENETIC INVOLVEMENT IN THE SLE, OTHER PHENOMENA SUCH AS METALLIZATION, HISTONE MODIFICATIONS, AND ALTERATIONS IN THE EXPRESSION OF NONCODING RNAS (NCRNAS) ALSO INDICATE THE INVOLVEMENT OF EPIGENETIC FACTORS IN THIS DISEASE. AMONG ALL THE EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS, NCRNAS APPEAR TO HAVE THE MOST CRUCIAL CONTRIBUTION TO THE PATHOGENESIS OF SLE. THE NCRNAS' LENGTH AND SIZE ARE DIVIDED INTO THREE MAIN CLASSES: MICRO RNAS, LONG NONCODING RNAS (LNCRNA), AND CIRCULAR RNAS (CIRCRNAS). ACCUMULATING EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT DYSREGULATIONS IN THESE NCRNAS CONTRIBUTED TO THE PATHOGENESIS OF SLE. HENCE, CLARIFYING THE FUNCTION OF THESE GROUPS OF NCRNAS IN THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF SLE PROVIDES A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF THE DISEASE. IT ALSO OPENS UP NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO DEVELOP TARGETED THERAPIES FOR THIS DISEASE. 2023 9 4411 33 MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR BASES OF IMMUNOSENESCENCE, INFLAMMATION, AND CARDIOVASCULAR COMPLICATIONS MIMICKING "INFLAMMAGING" IN PATIENTS WITH SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS AN ARCHETYPE OF SYSTEMIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE, CHARACTERIZED BY THE PRESENCE OF DIVERSE AUTOANTIBODIES AND CHRONIC INFLAMMATION. THERE ARE MULTIPLE FACTORS INVOLVED IN LUPUS PATHOGENESIS, INCLUDING GENETIC/EPIGENETIC PREDISPOSITION, SEXUAL HORMONE IMBALANCE, ENVIRONMENTAL STIMULANTS, MENTAL/PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESSES, AND UNDEFINED EVENTS. RECENTLY, MANY AUTHORS NOTED THAT "INFLAMMAGING", CONSISTING OF IMMUNOSENESCENCE AND INFLAMMATION, IS A COMMON FEATURE IN AGING PEOPLE AND PATIENTS WITH SLE. IT IS CONCEIVABLE THAT CHRONIC OXIDATIVE STRESSES ORIGINATING FROM MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, DEFECTIVE BIOENERGETICS, ABNORMAL IMMUNOMETABOLISM, AND PREMATURE TELOMERE EROSION MAY ACCELERATE IMMUNE CELL SENESCENCE IN PATIENTS WITH SLE. THE MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTIONS IN SLE HAVE BEEN EXTENSIVELY INVESTIGATED IN RECENT YEARS. THE MOLECULAR BASIS OF NORMOGLYCEMIC METABOLIC SYNDROME HAS BEEN FOUND TO BE RELEVANT TO THE PRODUCTION OF ADVANCED GLYCOSYLATED AND NITROSATIVE END PRODUCTS. BESIDES, IMMUNOSENESCENCE, AUTOIMMUNITY, ENDOTHELIAL CELL DAMAGE, AND DECREASED TISSUE REGENERATION COULD BE THE RESULTS OF PREMATURE TELOMERE EROSION IN PATIENTS WITH SLE. HEREIN, THE MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR BASES OF INFLAMMAGING AND CARDIOVASCULAR COMPLICATIONS IN SLE PATIENTS WILL BE EXTENSIVELY REVIEWED FROM THE ASPECTS OF MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTIONS, ABNORMAL BIOENERGETICS/IMMUNOMETABOLISM, AND TELOMERE/TELOMERASE DISEQUILIBRIUM. 2019 10 6276 33 THE PATHOGENIC ROLE OF DYSREGULATED EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS IN AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES. AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES CAN BE CHRONIC WITH RELAPSE OF INFLAMMATORY SYMPTOMS, BUT IT CAN BE ALSO ACUTE AND LIFE-THREATENING IF IMMUNE CELLS DESTROY LIFE-SUPPORTING ORGANS, SUCH AS LUPUS NEPHRITIS. THE ETIOPATHOGENESIS OF AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES HAS BEEN REVEALED AS THAT GENETICS AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS-MEDIATED DYSREGULATED IMMUNE RESPONSES CONTRIBUTE TO THE INITIATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF AUTOIMMUNE DISORDERS. HOWEVER, THE CURRENT UNDERSTANDING OF PATHOGENESIS IS LIMITED AND THE UNDERLYING MECHANISM HAS NOT BEEN WELL DEFINED, WHICH LOWS THE DEVELOPMENT OF NOVEL BIOMARKERS AND NEW THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES FOR AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES. TO IMPROVE THIS, BROADENING AND DEEPENING OUR UNDERSTANDING OF PATHOGENESIS IS AN UNMET NEED. AS GENETIC SUSCEPTIBILITY CANNOT EXPLAIN THE LOW ACCORDANCE RATE OF INCIDENCE IN HOMOZYGOUS TWINS, EPIGENETIC REGULATIONS MIGHT BE AN ADDITIONAL EXPLANATION. THEREFORE, THIS REVIEW WILL SUMMARIZE CURRENT PROGRESS OF STUDIES ON EPIGENETIC DYSREGULATIONS CONTRIBUTING TO AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES, INCLUDING SLE, RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS (RA), PSORIASIS, TYPE 1 DIABETES (T1D), AND SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS (SSC), HOPEFULLY PROVIDING OPINIONS ON ORIENTATION OF FUTURE RESEARCH, AS WELL AS DISCUSSING THE CLINICAL UTILIZATION OF POTENTIAL BIOMARKERS AND THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES FOR THESE DISEASES. 2019 11 1323 37 DENDRITIC CELLS IN SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS: FROM PATHOGENESIS TO THERAPEUTIC APPLICATIONS. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS A SEVERE CHRONIC SYSTEMIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE CAUSED BY COMPLICATED INTERACTIONS AMONG GENETIC, EPIGENETIC, AND IMMUNOLOGICAL FACTORS. DENDRITIC CELLS (DCS), AS THE MOST IMPORTANT ANTIGEN-PRESENTING CELLS, PLAY PIVOTAL ROLES IN BOTH TRIGGERING PATHOGENIC AUTOIMMUNE RESPONSES, AND ALSO MAINTAINING IMMUNE TOLERANCE. DISTINCT DC SUBSETS ARE ENDOWED WITH DIVERSIFIED PHENOTYPIC AND FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERISTICS, AND PLAY VARIABLE ROLES IN SHAPING IMMUNITY AND TOLERANCE DURING THE DEVELOPMENT OF SLE. ABNORMAL ACTIVATION OR DISABLED TOLERANCE OF DCS NOT ONLY TRIGGERS ABERRANT PRODUCTION OF INFLAMMATORY MEDIATORS AND TYPE I INTERFERONS LEADING TO PATHOGENIC INNATE IMMUNITY AND AUTOINFLAMMATION, BUT ALSO CAUSES AN IMBALANCE OF EFFECTOR VERSUS REGULATORY T CELL RESPONSES AND SUSTAINED PRODUCTION OF AUTO-ANTIBODIES FROM B CELLS, LEADING TO CONTINUOUSLY AMPLIFIED AUTOIMMUNE PATHOGENESIS IN SLE. OVER THE PAST DECADE, SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE IN REVEALING THE CHANGES OF DC ACCUMULATION OR FUNCTION IN SLE, AND HOW THE FUNCTIONAL DYSREGULATIONS OF DCS CONTRIBUTE TO THE PATHOLOGICAL INFLAMMATION OF SLE, LEADING TO BREAKTHROUGHS IN DC-BASED THERAPEUTICS IN THE TREATMENT OF SLE. IN THIS REVIEW, WE REVIEW THE RECENT ADVANCES IN THE ACTIVATION AND FUNCTION OF THE MAJOR DC SUBSETS IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF SLE AS WELL AS THE THERAPEUTIC POTENTIAL OF TARGETING DC SUBSET OR STATUS AGAINST SLE. 2022 12 4030 22 LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS: A SHORT ACCOUNT. LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS IS A CHRONIC AUTOIMMUNE INFLAMMATORY DISEASE WITH DIVERSE CLINICAL MANIFESTATIONS INCLUDING ARTHRITIS, SKIN DISORDERS AND KIDNEY DISEASE. PATHOLOGICALLY IT IS CHARACTERISED BY COMPLEX INTERACTIONS BETWEEN MULTIPLE GENETIC, EPIGENETIC AND EXTRANEOUS FACTORS; AND SEROLOGICALLY BY THE PRESENCE OF A VARIETY OF ANTIBODIES WHICH ARE REACTIVE TO INTRACELLULAR MOLECULAR CONSTITUENTS. IMPAIRED CLEARANCE OF APOPTOTIC CELLS AND OF IMMUNE COMPLEXES, LOSS OF IMMUNE TOLERANCE TO SELF-ANTIGENS AND DYSREGULATION OF THE CYTOKINE NETWORK ACT SYNERGISTICALLY WITH EXTRANEOUS FACTORS SUCH AS ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION, VIRUSES AND CERTAIN DRUGS TO INDUCE AND SUSTAIN LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS. 2011 13 2529 26 EPIGENETICS CHANGES ASSOCIATED TO ENVIRONMENTAL TRIGGERS IN AUTOIMMUNITY. AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES (AIDS) ARE CHRONIC CONDITIONS INITIATED BY THE LOSS OF IMMUNOLOGICAL TOLERANCE TO SELF-ANTIGENS AND REPRESENT A HETEROGENEOUS GROUP OF DISORDERS THAT AFFECT SPECIFIC TARGET ORGANS OR MULTIPLE ORGANS IN DIFFERENT SYSTEMS. WHILE THE PATHOGENESIS OF AID REMAINS UNCLEAR, ITS AETIOLOGY IS MULTIFUNCTIONAL AND INCLUDES A COMBINATION OF GENETIC, EPIGENETIC, IMMUNOLOGICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS. IN AIDS, SEVERAL EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS ARE DEFECTIVE INCLUDING DNA DEMETHYLATION, ABNORMAL CHROMATIN POSITIONING ASSOCIATED WITH AUTOANTIBODY PRODUCTION AND ABNORMALITIES IN THE EXPRESSION OF RNA INTERFERENCE (RNAI). IT IS KNOWN THAT ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS MAY INTERFERE WITH DNA METHYLATION AND HISTONE MODIFICATIONS, HOWEVER, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT EPIGENETIC CHANGES DERIVED OF REGULATION OF RNAI. AN APPROACH TO THE KNOWN ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS AND THE MECHANISMS THAT ALTER THE EPIGENETIC REGULATION IN AIDS (WITH EMPHASIS IN SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS, THE PROTOTYPE OF SYSTEMIC AID) ARE SHOWED IN THIS REVIEW. 2016 14 6345 35 THE ROLE OF EPIGENETICS IN AUTOIMMUNE/INFLAMMATORY DISEASE. HISTORICALLY, SYSTEMIC SELF-INFLAMMATORY CONDITIONS WERE CLASSIFIED AS EITHER AUTOINFLAMMATORY AND CAUSED BY THE INNATE IMMUNE SYSTEM OR AUTOIMMUNE AND DRIVEN BY ADAPTIVE IMMUNE RESPONSES. HOWEVER, IT BECAME CLEAR THAT REALITY IS MUCH MORE COMPLEX AND THAT AUTOIMMUNE/INFLAMMATORY CONDITIONS RANGE ALONG AN "INFLAMMATORY SPECTRUM" WITH PRIMARILY AUTOINFLAMMATORY VS. AUTOIMMUNE CONDITIONS RESEMBLING EXTREMES AT EITHER END. EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS INFLUENCE GENE EXPRESSION AND ALTER CELLULAR FUNCTIONS WITHOUT MODIFYING THE GENOMIC SEQUENCE. METHYLATION OF CPG DNA DINUCLEOTIDES AND/OR THEIR HYDROXYMETHYLATION, POST-TRANSLATIONAL MODIFICATIONS TO AMINO TERMINI OF HISTONE PROTEINS, AND NON-CODING RNA EXPRESSION ARE MAIN EPIGENETIC EVENTS. THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF AUTOIMMUNE/INFLAMMATORY DISEASES HAS BEEN CLOSELY LINKED WITH DISEASE CAUSING GENE MUTATIONS (RARE) OR A COMBINATION OF GENETIC SUSCEPTIBILITY AND EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS ARISING FROM EXPOSURE TO THE ENVIRONMENT (MORE COMMON). OVER RECENT YEARS, PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE IN UNDERSTANDING MOLECULAR MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN SYSTEMIC INFLAMMATION AND THE CONTRIBUTION OF INNATE AND ADAPTIVE IMMUNE RESPONSES. EPIGENETIC EVENTS HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS (I) CENTRAL PATHOPHYSIOLOGICAL FACTORS IN ADDITION TO GENETIC DISEASE PREDISPOSITION AND (II) AS CO-FACTORS DETERMINING CLINICAL PICTURES AND OUTCOMES IN INDIVIDUALS WITH MONOGENIC DISEASE. THUS, A COMPLETE UNDERSTANDING OF EPIGENETIC CONTRIBUTORS TO AUTOIMMUNE/INFLAMMATORY DISEASE WILL RESULT IN APPROACHES TO PREDICT INDIVIDUAL DISEASE OUTCOMES AND THE INTRODUCTION OF EFFECTIVE, TARGET-DIRECTED, AND TOLERABLE THERAPIES. HERE, WE SUMMARIZE RECENT FINDINGS THAT SIGNIFY THE IMPORTANCE OF EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS IN AUTOIMMUNE/INFLAMMATORY DISORDERS ALONG THE INFLAMMATORY SPECTRUM CHOOSING THREE EXAMPLES: THE AUTOINFLAMMATORY BONE CONDITION CHRONIC NONBACTERIAL OSTEOMYELITIS (CNO), THE "MIXED PATTERN" DISORDER PSORIASIS, AND THE AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE). 2019 15 6275 36 THE PATHOGENESIS OF SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS: HARNESSING BIG DATA TO UNDERSTAND THE MOLECULAR BASIS OF LUPUS. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS A CHRONIC, SYSTEMIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE THAT CAUSES DAMAGE TO MULTIPLE ORGAN SYSTEMS. DESPITE DECADES OF RESEARCH AND AVAILABLE MURINE MODELS THAT CAPTURE SOME ASPECTS OF THE HUMAN DISEASE, NEW TREATMENTS FOR SLE LAG BEHIND OTHER AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES SUCH AS RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS AND CROHN'S DISEASE. BIG DATA GENOMIC ASSAYS HAVE TRANSFORMED OUR UNDERSTANDING OF SLE BY PROVIDING IMPORTANT INSIGHTS INTO THE MOLECULAR HETEROGENEITY OF THIS MULTIGENIC DISEASE. GENE WIDE ASSOCIATION STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED MORE THAN 100 RISK LOCI, SUPPORTING A MODEL OF MULTIPLE GENETIC HITS INCREASING SLE RISK IN A NON-LINEAR FASHION, AND PROVIDING EVIDENCE OF ANCESTRAL DIVERSITY IN SUSCEPTIBILITY LOCI. EPIGENETIC STUDIES TO DETERMINE THE ROLE OF METHYLATION, ACETYLATION AND NON-CODING RNAS HAVE PROVIDED NEW UNDERSTANDING OF THE MODULATION OF GENE EXPRESSION IN SLE PATIENTS AND IDENTIFIED NEW DRUG TARGETS AND BIOMARKERS FOR SLE. GENE EXPRESSION PROFILING HAS LED TO A GREATER UNDERSTANDING OF THE ROLE OF MYELOID CELLS IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF SLE, CONFIRMED ROLES FOR T AND B CELLS IN SLE, PROMOTED CLINICAL TRIALS BASED ON THE PROMINENT INTERFERON SIGNATURE FOUND IN SLE PATIENTS, AND IDENTIFIED CANDIDATE BIOMARKERS AND CELLULAR SIGNATURES TO FURTHER DRUG DEVELOPMENT AND DRUG REPURPOSING. GENE EXPRESSION STUDIES ARE ADVANCING OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE UNDERLYING MOLECULAR HETEROGENEITY IN SLE AND PROVIDING HOPE THAT PATIENT STRATIFICATION WILL EXPEDITE NEW THERAPIES BASED ON PERSONAL MOLECULAR SIGNATURES. ALTHOUGH BIG DATA ANALYSES PRESENT UNIQUE INTERPRETATION CHALLENGES, BOTH COMPUTATIONALLY AND BIOLOGICALLY, ADVANCES IN MACHINE LEARNING APPLICATIONS MAY FACILITATE THE ABILITY TO PREDICT CHANGES IN SLE DISEASE ACTIVITY AND OPTIMIZE THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES. 2020 16 2224 24 EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS. SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS IS A RARE CHRONIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE, WHICH MAINLY MANIFESTS AS IMMUNE DISORDERS, VASCULAR DAMAGE, AND PROGRESSIVE FIBROSIS. THE ETIOLOGY OF SSC IS COMPLEX AND INVOLVES MULTIPLE FACTORS. BOTH GENETIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS ARE INVOLVED IN ITS PATHOGENESIS. AS ONE OF THE MOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS, EPIGENETIC REGULATION PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE OCCURRENCE AND DEVELOPMENT OF SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS, WHICH INVOLVES DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATION AND NON-CODING RNA REGULATION. THIS REVIEW SUMMARIZES RESEARCH ADVANCES IN EPIGENETICS, INCLUDING EXOSOMES, LNCRNA, AND MENTIONS POSSIBLE BIOMARKERS AND THERAPEUTIC TARGETS AMONG THEM. 2022 17 1463 28 DISSECTING COMPLEX EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS IN HUMAN LUPUS. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS IS A CHRONIC RELAPSING AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE THAT PRIMARILY AFFLICTS WOMEN, AND BOTH A GENETIC PREDISPOSITION AND APPROPRIATE ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURES ARE REQUIRED FOR LUPUS TO DEVELOP AND FLARE. THE GENETIC REQUIREMENT IS EVIDENCED BY AN INCREASED CONCORDANCE IN IDENTICAL TWINS AND BY THE VALIDATION OF AT LEAST 35 SINGLE-NUCLEOTIDE POLYMORPHISMS PREDISPOSING PATIENTS TO LUPUS. GENES ALONE, THOUGH, ARE NOT ENOUGH. THE CONCORDANCE OF LUPUS IN IDENTICAL TWINS IS OFTEN INCOMPLETE, AND WHEN CONCORDANT, THE AGE OF ONSET IS USUALLY DIFFERENT. LUPUS IS ALSO NOT PRESENT AT BIRTH, BUT ONCE THE DISEASE DEVELOPS, IT TYPICALLY FOLLOWS A CHRONIC RELAPSING COURSE. THUS, GENES ALONE ARE INSUFFICIENT TO CAUSE HUMAN LUPUS, AND ADDITIONAL FACTORS ENCOUNTERED IN THE ENVIRONMENT AND OVER TIME ARE REQUIRED TO INITIATE THE DISEASE AND SUBSEQUENT FLARES. THE NATURE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONTRIBUTION, THOUGH, AND THE MECHANISMS BY WHICH ENVIRONMENTAL AGENTS MODIFY THE IMMUNE RESPONSE TO CAUSE LUPUS ONSET AND FLARES IN GENETICALLY PREDISPOSED PEOPLE HAVE BEEN CONTROVERSIAL. REPORTS THAT THE LUPUS-INDUCING DRUGS PROCAINAMIDE AND HYDRALAZINE ARE EPIGENETIC MODIFIERS, THAT EPIGENETICALLY MODIFIED T CELLS ARE SUFFICIENT TO CAUSE LUPUS-LIKE AUTOIMMUNITY IN ANIMAL MODELS, AND THAT PATIENTS WITH ACTIVE LUPUS HAVE EPIGENETIC CHANGES SIMILAR TO THOSE CAUSED BY PROCAINAMIDE AND HYDRALAZINE HAVE PROMPTED A GROWING INTEREST IN HOW EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS CONTRIBUTE TO THIS DISEASE. UNDERSTANDING HOW EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS MODIFY T CELLS TO CONTRIBUTE TO LUPUS REQUIRES AN UNDERSTANDING OF HOW EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS REGULATE GENE EXPRESSION. THE ROLES OF DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE MODIFICATIONS, AND MICRORNAS IN LUPUS PATHOGENESIS WILL BE REVIEWED HERE. 2013 18 6800 38 [EPIGENETIC DISTURBANCES IN SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS]. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS A CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE THAT RESULTS IN UNCONTROLLED IMMUNE SYSTEM ACTIVATION AND OVERPRODUCTION OF AUTOANTIBODIES. THE PATHOGENESIS OF THE DISEASE IS COMPLEX AND NOT FULLY UNDERSTOOD, NEVERTHELESS, GENETIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE. SO FAR, ABOUT 30 GENES HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED TO BE INVOLVED IN THE SLE PATHOMECHANISM. HOWEVER, NOT ALL GENETICALLY PREDISPOSED INDIVIDUALS DEVELOP THE DISEASE. THIS PHENOMENON CAN BE ASSOCIATED WITH EPIGENETIC CHANGES THAT OCCUR UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS. THEY CAN AFFECT GENE EXPRESSION AND ARE POTENTIALLY HEREDITARY, BUT DO NOT LEAD TO CHANGES IN THE NUCLEOTIDE SEQUENCE. EPIGENETIC DYSFUNCTIONS, IDENTIFIED IN THE COURSE OF THE DISEASE, LEAD TO CHANGES IN THE EXPRESSION OF GENES THAT PLAY A KEY ROLE IN MAINTAINING THE BODY'S IMMUNE TOLERANCE. MAJOR MECHANISMS OF EPIGENETIC VARIABILITY ARE: DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE PROTEIN MODIFICATION, NON-CODING RNA EXPRESSION, AS WELL AS GENE IMPRINTING. THE MAJOR EPIGENETIC DYSFUNCTIONS AFFECTING THE PATHOGENESIS OF THE DISEASE ARE GLOBAL HYPOMETHYLATION ON CD4+ T CELLS RESULTING FROM ERK SIGNALING PATHWAY REGULATION, HISTONE HYPOACETYLATION, HISTONE H3 LYSINE METHYLATION, AND REACTIVATION OF INACTIVE CHROMOSOME X. IN LUPUS PATIENTS, VARIOUS EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS INTERACT WITH EACH OTHER, ENHANCING THE EXPRESSION OR SILENCING OF GENES RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF PRO-INFLAMMATORY AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES AND ACTIVATION OF AUTOREACTIVE B-LYMPHOCYTES. 2018 19 4981 31 PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS: CURRENT UNDERSTANDING AND NEW INSIGHTS. INTRODUCTION: SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS (SSC) IS A COMPLEX AUTOIMMUNE CONNECTIVE TISSUE DISEASE CHARACTERIZED BY CHRONIC AND PROGRESSIVE TISSUE AND ORGAN FIBROSIS WITH BROAD PATIENT-TO-PATIENT VARIABILITY. SOME RISK FACTORS ARE KNOWN AND INCLUDE COMBINATION OF PERSISTENT RAYNAUD'S PHENOMENON, STEROID HORMONE IMBALANCE, SELECTED CHEMICALS, THERMAL, OR OTHER INJURIES. ENDOGENOUS AND/OR EXOGENOUS ENVIRONMENTAL TRIGGER/RISK FACTORS PROMOTE EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS IN GENETICALLY PRIMED SUBJECTS. DISEASE PATHOGENESIS PRESENTS EARLY MICROVASCULAR CHANGES WITH ENDOTHELIAL CELL DYSFUNCTION, FOLLOWED BY THE ACTIVATION OF MECHANISMS PROMOTING THEIR TRANSITION INTO MYOFIBROBLASTS. A COMPLEX AUTOIMMUNE RESPONSE, INVOLVING INNATE AND ADAPTIVE IMMUNITY WITH SPECIFIC/FUNCTIONAL AUTOANTIBODY PRODUCTION, CHARACTERIZES THE DISEASE. PROGRESSIVE FIBROSIS AND ISCHEMIA INVOLVE SKIN AND VISCERAL ORGANS RESULTING IN THEIR IRREVERSIBLE DAMAGE/FAILURE. PROGENITOR CIRCULATING CELLS (MONOCYTES, FIBROCYTES), TOGETHER WITH GROWTH FACTORS AND CYTOKINES PARTICIPATE IN DISEASE DIFFUSION AND EVOLUTION. EPIGENETIC, VASCULAR AND IMMUNOLOGIC MECHANISMS IMPLICATED IN SYSTEMIC FIBROSIS, REPRESENT MAJOR TARGETS FOR INCOMING DISEASE MODIFYING THERAPEUTIC APPROACHES. AREAS COVERED: THIS REVIEW DISCUSSES CURRENT UNDERSTANDING AND NEW INSIGHTS OF SSC PATHOGENESIS, THROUGH AN OVERVIEW OF THE MOST RELEVANT ADVANCEMENTS TO PRESENT ASPECTS AND MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN DISEASE PATHOGENESIS. EXPERT OPINION: CONSIDERING SSC INTRICACY/HETEROGENEITY, EARLY COMBINATION THERAPY WITH VASODILATORS, IMMUNOSUPPRESSIVE AND ANTIFIBROTIC DRUGS SHOULD SUCCESSFULLY DOWNREGULATE THE DISEASE PROGRESSION, ESPECIALLY IF STARTED FROM THE BEGINNING. 2019 20 5886 32 SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS A CHRONIC MULTISYSTEM AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE THAT IS HIGHLY HETEROGENEOUS IN ITS PRESENTATION. THIS CAN POSE SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGES FOR PHYSICIANS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF SUCH PATIENTS. SLE ARISES FROM A COMBINATION OF GENETIC, EPIGENETIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS. PATHOLOGICALLY, THE DISEASE IS PRIMARILY DRIVEN BY LOSS OF IMMUNE TOLERANCE AND ABNORMAL B- AND T-CELL FUNCTION. MAJOR ORGAN INVOLVEMENT MAY LEAD TO SIGNIFICANT MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY. CLASSIFICATION CRITERIA FOR SLE HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED LARGELY FOR RESEARCH PURPOSES; HOWEVER, THESE ARE ALSO WIDELY USED IN CLINICAL PRACTICE. ANTINUCLEAR ANTIBODIES ARE THE HALLMARK SEROLOGICAL FEATURE, OCCURRING IN OVER 95% OF PATIENTS WITH SLE AT SOME POINT DURING THEIR DISEASE. THE MAINSTAY OF TREATMENT IS ANTIMALARIAL DRUGS SUCH AS HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE, COMBINED WITH CORTICOSTEROIDS AND CONVENTIONAL IMMUNOSUPPRESSIVE DRUGS. AN INCREASING UNDERSTANDING OF PATHOGENESIS HAS FACILITATED A MOVE TOWARDS THE DEVELOPMENT OF TARGETED BIOLOGIC THERAPIES, WITH THE INTRODUCTION OF RITUXIMAB AND BELIMUMAB INTO CLINICAL PRACTICE. 2017