atrial-natriuretic-factor and Lupus-Erythematosus--Systemic

A clinical and laboratory survey of systemic lupus erythematosus was conducted in 33 Arab patients in the UAE. Arthropathy (91%) followed by renal involvement (54%) and haematological disorders (45.5%) were the major clinical manifestations. Discoid rash (3%) was the least common. Apart from headaches, other neuropsychiatric symptoms were uncommon or not encountered. A number of distinctive clinical subsets of lupus was also observed. An unusually high prevalence of dsDNA antibodies was detected in the study (97%), compared with a prevalence of 89.5% of ANF. There was a relative paucity of anti-Ro (18.5%), La (7.5%) and RNP (11%) antibodies, but a high rate of anti-Sm(33%). The occurrence of the latter in patients with central nervous system and renal disease was insignificant. C3-Hypocomplementaemia occurred in 38.5% of the patients and a positive VDRL and Coomb's test in 9% and 24%, respectively. This study provides additional information on the characterization of systemic lupus erythematosus in various populations.

Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Antibodies; Antibodies, Antinuclear; Arabs; Atrial Natriuretic Factor; Autoantigens; Central Nervous System Diseases; Complement C3; Coombs Test; Female; Hematologic Diseases; Humans; Joint Diseases; Kidney Diseases; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic; Male; Middle Aged; Ribonucleoproteins, Small Nuclear; Skin Diseases; snRNP Core Proteins; United Arab Emirates

Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP), a peptide released from the cardiac atria, compensates blood volume expansion by its diuretic, natriuretic and vasoactive properties. We measured human plasma ANP(hANP) levels in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and progressive systemic sclerosis (PSS) and found that their values were higher than those of healthy controls. In SLE patients, hANP levels correlated with serum creatinine concentration and the patients with proteinuria showed high levels of hANP. Administration of large amount of corticosteroid as a remission induction of the patients with SLE caused high levels of hANP. In patients with PSS, %FEV1 showed strong inverse correlations between hANP levels, and the patients with an enlarged second curvature of the heart had high levels of hANP. In patients with RA, no significant correlation was found between hANP levels and clinical variables including patients' age.

Topics: Adult; Arthritis, Rheumatoid; Atrial Natriuretic Factor; Creatinine; Electrocardiography; Female; Heart; Humans; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic; Male; Middle Aged; Osmolar Concentration; Prednisolone; Radiography; Scleroderma, Systemic

To elucidate the circulating forms of human atrial natriuretic peptide (hANP) in collagen disease, we analysed plasma samples obtained from 21 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis or progressive systemic sclerosis with no clinical evidence of cardiac involvement. The findings were compared with those obtained from 21 healthy control subjects. Plasma hANP-like immunoreactivity was normal in all but three of the controls and in two patients with the nephrotic syndrome due to lupus nephritis. Reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography, gel permeation chromatography and subsequent radioimmunoassay for hANP revealed that the circulating hANP consisted of alpha-hANP, beta-hANP and gamma-hANP in the patients with collagen disease whereas alpha-hANP predominated in the control group. beta-hANP appeared in 18 of the 21 patients but was not observed in the controls. These data suggest that beta-hANP circulates in the plasma of patients with collagen disease even when no myocardial involvement is apparent and that the appearance of beta-hANP is not always associated with an increase in total plasma hANP-like immunoreactivity. Thus the appearance of beta-hANP in plasma is not a phenomenon specific to congestive heart failure.

Topics: Adult; Arthritis, Rheumatoid; Atrial Natriuretic Factor; Chromatography, Gel; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Female; Humans; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic; Male; Middle Aged; Radioimmunoassay; Scleroderma, Systemic