Osteopontin, osteoprotegerin and musculoskeletal ultrasound findings in first-degree relatives of rheumatoid arthritis: potential markers of preclinical disease.

Background: First-degree relatives (FDRs) of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients are known to have increased risk of developing the disease. The detection of altered bone metabolism in FDRs could be a predictor of the disease. Musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSUS) is known for its ability to detect subclinical joint inflammation in RA, but changes in FDRs are not yet described.

The impact of folate pathway variants on the outcome of methotrexate therapy in rheumatoid arthritis patients.

Background: There are currently no validated criteria that entirely explain or predict response to methotrexate (MTX) treatment in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We tried to identify the connection between three variants (RFC1 G80A (rs1051266), TYMS 2R/3R (rs34743033), and ATIC C347G (rs2372536)) in the folate pathway of MTX metabolism and the response to MTX monotherapy in a cohort of RA cases.

Methods: A prospective study on 100 RA patients on MTX monotherapy was performed.

Patterns of Interstitial Lung Disease in Egyptian Patients with Systemic Sclerosis: Relation to Disease Parameters.

Background: Pulmonary involvement is the most common leading cause of morbidity and mortality associated with systemic sclerosis. Therefore, identifying the various patterns of pulmonary affection is crucial in the clinical management of these patients. In the current study, we aim to investigate the patterns of interstitial lung disease (ILD) associated with SSc patients (SSc- ILD) and their relation to serologic markers and clinical parameters.

Urinary Cellular Profile as a Biomarker for Lupus Nephritis.

Background/objective: A search for the ideal biomarker for lupus nephritis (LN) is still underway, one that can be used for early detection and correlate with the class and activity of LN. Urine is normally devoid of leukocytes; however, it has been observed that macrophages and T lymphocytes are routinely present in the urine of LN patients and those with other proliferative renal diseases. This provides the idea for their potential use as biomarkers for proliferative LN.

Serum Peptidomic Profile as a Novel Biomarker for Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Over the last decades, there has been an increasing need to discover new diagnostic RA biomarkers, other than the current serologic biomarkers, which can assist early diagnosis and response to treatment. The purpose of this study was to analyze the serum peptidomic profile in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) by using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS). The study included 35 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), 35 patients with primary osteoarthritis (OA) as the disease control (DC), and 35 healthy controls (HC).