Lupus Study Showed Vitamin D Did Not Improve Bone Health
September 19, 2019 A small clinical trial published in Lupus Science & Medicine found that taking vitamin D supplements did not improve bone health for people with lupus. Conducted by several lupus experts throughout the U.S., the study looked at the effect of vitamin D supplements on changes in bone turnover markers that indicate changes […]
Osteporosis
A skeletal disorder characterized by compromised bone strength predisposing to an increased risk of fracture. Bone strength reflects the integration of two main features: bone density and bone quality. Bone density is expressed as grams of mineral per area or volume and in any given individual is determined by peak bone mass and amount of […]
Exercise for People with Lupus*
April 18, 2019 According to Henry Ford, “Exercise is bunk. If you are healthy, you don’t need it: if you are sick you should not take it.” Just the opposite says Clinical Specialist Exercise Physiologist Heather Milton, MS, RCEP, CSCS at NYU Langone Medical Center Sports Performance Center. Presenting at the Lupus Lifestyle Series sponsored […]
Pivotal LRA-Funded Research Shared at Annual Rheumatology Meeting
November 15, 2021 The Lupus Research Alliance (LRA) supports research into causes and mechanisms of lupus, and identification of targets supporting the development of new therapies or cures for lupus patients. At this year’s meeting of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), 17 LRA-funded researchers presented their work to share discoveries with the thousands of […]
Dysfunctional Red Blood Cells in Children Identified as a Potential Root Cause of Lupus
Research Funded by the Lupus Research Alliance Published in Today’s “Cell” NEW YORK, NY August 11, 2021. Pediatric lupus expert Virginia Pascual, MD together with her junior colleague Simone Caielli, PhD and their team at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York identified problems in the red blood cells of children with active Systemic Lupus […]
Aggrecan
Aggrecan is a type of protein known as a proteoglycan, which means it has several sugar molecules attached to it. It is the most abundant proteoglycan in cartilage, a tough, flexible tissue that makes up much of the skeleton during early development. Most cartilage is later converted to bone (a process called ossification), except for […]
Myeloid Cells
Granulocytes and monocytes, collectively called myeloid cells, are differentiated descendants from common progenitors derived from hematopoietic stem cells in the bone marrow. Commitment to either lineage of myeloid cells is controlled by distinct transcription factors followed by terminal differentiation in response to specific colony-stimulating factors and release into the circulation. Upon pathogen invasion, myeloid cells […]
White Blood Cell
Any of several kinds of colorless or nearly colorless cells of the immune system that circulate in the blood and lymph. Leukocytes comprise granulocytes and agranulocytes. Neutrophils, 55% to 70% of all leukocytes, are the most numerous phagocytic cells and are a primary effector cell in inflammation. Eosinophils, 1% to 3% of total leukocytes, destroy […]
T Cells
A type of white blood cell. T-lymphocytes are part of the immune system and develop from stem cells in the bone marrow. They help protect the body from infection and may help fight cancer. Source: NIH.gov
Platelet
A round or oval disk, 2 to 4 μm in diameter, found in the blood of vertebrates. Platelets number 130,000 to 400,000/mm3. They are fragments of megakaryocytes, large cells found in the bone marrow.