Autoimmune Disease
When your body turns on you, bad things can happen. Designed to protect you from viruses, bacteria and foreign invaders, the immune system sometimes malfunctions, causing scleroderma, lupus and more than 80 other potentially crippling disorders. Scientists and clinicians at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston have made critical research and patient care breakthroughs in autoimmune and autoinflammatory disease, offering hope for a healthier future. As innovators, they can share this expertise with reporters.
Related News Releases
UT rheumatologists advance genetic research related to disabling form of arthritis
Work done in part by researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston has led to the discovery of two new genes that are implicated in ankylosing spondylitis (AS), an inflammatory and potentially disabling disease. In addition, the international research team pinpointed two areas along stretches of DNA that play an important role in regulating gene activity associated with the arthritic condition.Read more...
Genetic analysis of scleroderma patients underway
In an effort to pinpoint genes tied to scleroderma, scientists at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and other leading institutions are comparing the DNA of people with the autoimmune disease and without. The five-year, $6 million study could help scientists disrupt the progression of this disease. Read more...
Scleroderma can lead to dramatic lifestyle changes
An active 35-year-old high school teacher, Shannon Abert's life changed rapidly. Suddenly unable to complete workouts, Abert would be diagnosed with scleroderma, which is a chronic, progressive disease of connective tissue. Abert shares her story. Read more...
Human autoantibodies induce pre-eclampsia features in mice
In a proof-of-principle study, biochemists at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston induced symptoms similar to pre-eclampsia in pregnant mice that had been administered autoantibodies isolated from women with the condition. Their discovery could lead to a new approach to the care of this dangerous condition that affects pregnant women. Read more...
Researchers close to nailing down genes tied to disabling form of arthritis
With the discovery of two genes, scientists have now found 70 percent of the genes responsible for a disabling form of arthritis called ankylosing spondylitis. This information could help clinicians assess individual risk. Read more...
UT studies silica exposure and scleroderma
At least 1.7 million Americans have been exposed to silica and could be at risk for a chronic autoimmune disorder called scleroderma. Researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston are in the midst of a four-year, $928,125 study of silica and other factors that could affect disease risk. Read more...
Polymyalgia rheumatica is simple to treat but difficult to diagnose
For more than a year, Mary Margaret Carmichael lived with severe aches and pains. She went to numerous specialists, none of whom were able to diagnose the cause of her persistent low-grade fever and stiffness and pain in her neck, shoulders, back and hips. It turns out she had a disease that is relatively simple to treat but often difficult to diagnose. Read more....
UT scientists and clinicians are innovators in autoimmune and autoinflammatory disease research and care
HOUSTON - (Dec. 2, 2009) - Autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases are on the rise and researchers and physicians at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston are at the forefront of efforts to stem the tide. These diseases are often hard to diagnose and often affect individuals differently.
Autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases occur when a person's immune system attacks his or her own tissues. In autoimmune diseases, there usually are circulating immune markers, which help in diagnosis. These diseases, which include rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes and scleroderma, also tend to run in the same families and share many of the same genes. Autoinflammatory diseases do not show these same markers but are increasingly being linked to infections or specific gene mutations. These diseases include ankylosing spondylitis, Familial Mediterranean Fever and TNF receptor-associated periodic syndrome (TRAPS).
Fact sheet provided by the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association, Inc.
AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES FACT SHEET
Autoimmune Diseases ...Are a major health problem.
- The National Institutes of Health (NIH) estimates up to 23.5 million Americans suffer from autoimmune diseases and that the prevalence is rising.
- Researchers have identified 80-100 different autoimmune diseases and suspect at least 40 additional diseases of having an autoimmune basis. These diseases are chronic and can be life-threatening.
- A close genetic relationship exists among autoimmune diseases, explaining clustering in individuals and families as well as common pathways of diseases.
- Autoimmune diseases have been named a major women's health issue, according to the National Institutes of Health's Office of Research on Women's Health. Autoimmune diseases strike women three times more often than men.
Provided by the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association
To schedule interviews, please call the Media Relations Team at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. The 24/7 media hotline is 713-500-3030.
UT scientists are available to comment on autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases
Autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases are a major health issue. The National Institutes of Health reports that up to 23.5 million Americans are afflicted. The American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association reports the number is closer to 50 million. Scientists and clinicians at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston can address the diagnosis and treatment of these conditions, as well as the latest advances in research.
Sandeep K. Agarwal M.D., Ph.D., is an assistant professor in the Division of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunogenetics at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. Agarwal is available to discuss clinical and research aspects of diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, systemic lupus erythematosus, myositis, and scleroderma. His research focuses on the fibroblast-immune interactions and cytokine regulation of autoimmune diseases.
Frank Arnett, Jr., M.D., professor of internal medicine and pathology and laboratory medicine at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, is a leading rheumatology investigator. He can answer questions about lupus, scleroderma and gout. Arnett has been with the university for 25 years and is a past chief of rheumatology at Memorial Hermann - Texas Medical Center and the Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital.
Shervin Assassi, M.D. is available to discuss the genetic and clinical risk factors for various complications of scleroderma, specifically pulmonary fibrosis. He is also able to discuss the clinical and genetic factors behind occurrence of ankylosing spondylitis and spondyloarthritis in families. Assassi is an assistant professor of rheumatology at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston and sees patients at UT Physicians in the UT Professional Building clinic and the Harris County Hospital District's Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital.
Staley A. Brod, M.D., professor of neurology at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, is devoted to research directed at understanding the underlying immune abnormalities of human autoimmune disease. He follows 750 patients with multiple sclerosis and is principal investigator for four clinical trials in multiple sclerosis and a study on the effect of oral interferon alpha on juvenile diabetes. Brod is a member of the American Academy of Neurology and the International Society for Interferon and Cytokine Research and a reviewer for publications including Neurology, Archives of Neurology, the Journal of Autoimmunity and the Journal of Neuroimmunology and Diabetologia. He was included in the 2009 America's Top Physicians by the Consumer's Research Council of America.
Adelaide Hebert, M.D., professor of dermatology and pediatrics who serves as director of Pediatric Dermatology at The University of Texas Medical School, has treated and studied children with psoriasis. The University of Texas Dermatology Clinical Research Center was one of the sites involved in the study of children with psoriasis treated with Etanercept, the results of which were published in a 2008 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. She is former president of the Society of Pediatric Dermatology.
Dorothy E. Lewis, Ph.D., a professor of infectious disease in the Department of Internal Medicine at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, is researching the possibility that treatments designed to restore immune function in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) patients may exacerbate their susceptibility to autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases. In addition, she says obesity may contribute to the development of these diseases. Lewis can also answer questions about flow cytometry, which is the measurement of different types of cells in the immune system.
John D. Reveille, M.D., professor and director of the Division of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunogenetics at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, is a world expert in ankylosing spondylitis. His research has been published in many journals and is funded by the National Institutes of Health. He can answer questions about ankylosing spondylitis, lupus, scleroderma and HIV-associated rheumatic diseases. Reveille has been with the university for nearly 25 years. Reveille is chief of rheumatology at Memorial Hermann – Texas Medical Center.
Dat Q. Tran, M.D., assistant professor of allergy/immunology at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, is available to discuss the involvement of immune cells in autoimmune and auto-inflammatory diseases and the therapeutic applications of these cells, particularly regulatory T cells, to control inflammation, immune dysregulation and autoimmunity.Tran is an allergy/immunology specialist for Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital.
Yang Xia, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, provided pre-clinical evidence suggesting that a potentially deadly pregnancy complication known as pre-eclampsia could be an autoimmune disease. Her research has appeared in major publications. Co-investigators include Rodney E. Kellems, Ph.D., professor and chairman of UT Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Xia can answer questions on priapism and cardiovascular diseases as well.
Jerry S. Wolinsky, M.D., is professor of neurology and director of the Multiple Sclerosis Research Group and Magnetic Resonance Imaging Analysis Center at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. He is active in the design, implementation, conduct and analysis of clinical trials of multiple sclerosis and has authored more than 200 publications on neurovirology and neuroimmunology. He serves or has served on review and advisory committees of the National Institutes of Health, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and the Food and Drug Administration. Wolinsky is also a member of the graduate faculty of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at The University of Texas.
Xiaodong Zhou, M.D., an associate professor in the Division of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunogenetics at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, is researching the impact of silica and other environmental factors on the development of scleroderma. He is in the midst of 4-year study comparing scleroderma patients and healthy men and women. He can answer questions about systemic sclerosis and ankylosing spondylitis with particular emphasis on gene-environment interactions and complex genetic networks.