Sex-specific NLRP3 activation in neutrophils promotes neutrophil recruitment and NETosis in the murine model of diffuse alveolar hemorrhage.

Objectives: Diffuse alveolar hemorrhage (DAH) is a life-threatening complication of systemic lupus erythematosus and small vessel vasculitis. We previously showed that neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) were associated with the pathogenesis of pristane-induced DAH and demonstrated that neutrophil NOD-like receptor family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome assembly participated in NET generation under sterile stimulation. We investigated whether NLRP3 inflammasome assembly in neutrophils may drive pulmonary NETosis in a mouse model of pristane-induced DAH.

Polymyalgia rheumatica and giant cell arteritis following COVID-19 vaccination: Results from a nationwide survey.

We conducted a national in-depth analysis including pharmacovigilance reports and clinical study to assess the reporting rate (RR) and to determine the clinical profile of polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) and giant cell arteritis (GCA) in COVID-19-vaccinated individuals. First, based on the French pharmacovigilance database, we estimated the RR of PMR and GCA cases in individuals aged over 50 who developed their initial symptoms within one month of receiving the BNT162b2 mRNA, mRNA-1273, ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, and Ad26.COV2.

Persistent COVID-19: A Case Report of an Immunocompromised Patient and a Literature Review.

Introduction: Immunocompromised patients can show prolonged shedding of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and persistent symptoms, which is called persistent COVID-19.

Case Presentation: We report a case of an immunocompromised patient who was treated for mantle cell lymphoma and was suffering from B-cell depletion. The patient developed persistent COVID-19, which was confirmed by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests in only sputum and bronchoalveolar fluid which remained positive for at least 112 days.

Molecular B-cell clonality assay in minor salivary glands as a useful tool for the lymphoma risk assessment in Sjögren's syndrome.

Objectives: Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) risk assessment is crucial in Sjögren's syndrome (SS). We studied the prevalence of clonal immunoglobulin gene rearrangements in minor salivary glands (MSG) and their correlations with lymphoma occurrence and with previously established NHL predictors.

Methods: Molecular B-cell expansion was studied in fresh-frozen MSG of 207 patients with either suspected SS or with suspected lymphoma during SS, using a standardised multiplex PCR assay combined with heteroduplex analysis by microcapillary electrophoresis.

NLRP3 is essential for neutrophil polarization and chemotaxis in response to leukotriene B4 gradient.

Neutrophil recruitment to sites of infection and inflammation is an essential process in the early innate immune response. Upon activation, a subset of neutrophils rapidly assembles the multiprotein complex known as the NLRP3 inflammasome. The NLRP3 inflammasome forms at the microtubule organizing center, which promotes the formation of interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-18, essential cytokines in the immune response.

Anti-Jo-1 autoantibodies: biomarkers of severity and evolution of the disease in antisynthetase syndrome.

Background: Anti-Jo-1 autoantibodies represent essential markers in the diagnosis of antisynthetase syndrome (ASS). In this retrospective study, we aimed to investigate whether their concentrations and fluctuations could both respectively reflect the severity and evolution of ASS.

Methods: Between 2015 and 2020, clinical and biological features of ASS patients with at least one positive measure of anti-Jo-1 autoantibody were collected.

Predictors of Relapses or Recurrences in Patients With Giant Cell Arteritis: A Medical Records Review Study.

Objective: Giant cell arteritis (GCA) is the most common systemic vasculitis in individuals aged ≥50 years. Its course is marked by a high relapse rate requiring long-term glucocorticoid use with its inherent adverse effects. We aimed to identify factors associated with relapses or recurrences in GCA at diagnosis.

Eosinopenia as Predictor of Poor Outcome in Hospitalized COVID-19 Adult Patients from Waves 1 and 2 of 2020 Pandemic.

During SARS-CoV-2 infection, eosinopenia may reflect a hyperactive immune response. In this study of hospitalized COVID-19 patients, we aimed to better understand the prognostic value of severe eosinopenia (absolute eosinophil count = 0 G/L) and decipher its underlying mechanisms. We retrospectively analyzed the records of COVID-19 patients hospitalized from March to June 2020 in three university hospitals in Marseille, France.

Paracentral Acute Middle Maculopathy as a Specific Sign of Arteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to assess the diagnostic accuracy of paracentral acute middle maculopathy (PAMM) in the setting of anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (AION) to distinguish arteritic (A-AION) from nonarteritic (NA-AION) type.

Design: Retrospective cross-sectional diagnostic evaluation.

Methods: PAMM was evaluated by 3 physicians blinded to diagnosis using macular spectral-domain optical coherence tomography.

Aortitis is an under-recognized manifestation of antiphospholipid syndrome: A case report and literature review.

Aortitis is a classic manifestation of large vessel vasculitis. Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), sometimes known as Hughes syndrome, is an acquired autoimmune disorder that manifests clinically as recurrent venous or arterial thrombosis. Patients with APS may also suffer from various underlying diseases, most frequently systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Factors associated with dexamethasone efficacy in COVID-19. A retrospective investigative cohort study.

Dexamethasone has demonstrated efficacy in reducing mortality in COVID-19. However, its practical use is badly defined. We aimed to investigate factors associated with dexamethasone efficacy in real life.

Assessment of the efficacy and safety of tocilizumab in patients over 80 years old with giant cell arteritis.

Objective: To assess the efficacy and tolerance of tocilizumab (TCZ) in giant cell arteritis (GCA) patients over 80.

Method: GCA patients over 80 years old from the French Study Group for Large Vessel Vasculitis register who received TCZ were analyzed.

Results: Twenty-one GCA patients (median age 84 [81-90] years old, including nine over 85) received TCZ for the following nonexclusive reasons: glucocorticoid (GC)-sparing effect in 14, relapsing disease in 8, disease severity in 4, and/or failure of another immunosuppressant in 4.

Anti-NuMA antibodies: clinical associations and significance in patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome or systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective: To determine the clinical significance of anti-nuclear mitotic apparatus (NuMA) antibodies (AC-26 or AC-25) in patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) and SLE.

Methods: Between 2013 and 2018, clinical and immunological features of pSS and SLE patients with anti-NuMA antibodies were compared with anti-NuMA antibodies-negative pSS and SLE cohorts.

Results: Among 31 284 sera positive for antinuclear antibodies, 90 patients (0.

Triage of Patients Suspected of COVID-19 in Chronic Hemodialysis: Eosinophil Count Differentiates Low and High Suspicion of COVID-19.

Background: Daily management to shield chronic dialysis patients from SARS-CoV-2 contamination makes patient care cumbersome. There are no screening methods to date and a molecular biology platform is essential to perform RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2; however, accessibility remains poor. Our goal was to assess whether the tools routinely used to monitor our hemodialysis patients could represent reliable and quickly accessible diagnostic indicators to improve the management of our hemodialysis patients in this pandemic environment.

Natural history of COVID-19 and therapeutic options.

: COVID-19 presents benign forms in young patients who frequently present with anosmia. Infants are rarely infected, while severe forms occur in patients over 65 years of age with comorbidities, including hypertension and diabetes. Lymphopenia, eosinopenia, thrombopenia, increased lactate dehydrogenase, troponin, C-reactive protein, D-dimers and low zinc levels are associated with severity.

Early IL-1 receptor blockade in severe inflammatory respiratory failure complicating COVID-19.

Around the tenth day after diagnosis, ∼20% of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-associated pneumonia evolve toward severe oxygen dependence (stage 2b) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (stage 3) associated with systemic inflammation often termed a "cytokine storm." Because interleukin-1 (IL-1) blocks the production of IL-6 and other proinflammatory cytokines, we treated COVID-19 patients early in the disease with the IL-1 receptor antagonist, anakinra. We retrospectively compared 22 patients from three different centers in France with stages 2b and 3 COVID-19-associated pneumonia presenting with acute severe respiratory failure and systemic inflammation who received either standard-of-care treatment alone (10 patients) or combined with intravenous anakinra (12 patients).

Axial Articular Manifestations in Primary Sjögren Syndrome: Association With Spondyloarthritis.

Objective: To assess the prevalence of axial articular manifestations (AAMs) in patients with primary Sjögren syndrome (pSS), to investigate whether these symptoms reveal an associated spondyloarthritis (SpA), and to assess their therapeutic management.

Methods: Among 148 consecutive patients with pSS fulfilling European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR)/American College of Rheumatology 2019 classification criteria followed between 2010 and 2018, we selected those who presented with AAMs. The association with SpA was retained when patients fulfilled Assessment of SpA international Society criteria.