ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Immunol.

Sec. Autoimmune and Autoinflammatory Disorders : Autoimmune Disorders

Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2025.1571147

This article is part of the Research TopicNovel Biomarkers for Early Diagnosis, involved in Autoimmune and Autoinflammatory DiseasesView all 13 articles

Potential of Serum Sulfatide Levels as a Marker for Classification and Disease Activity in Lupus Nephritis

Provisionally accepted
  • Shinshu University, Matsumoto, Japan

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Introduction: Lupus nephritis (LN) is a severe complication of systemic lupus erythematosus, often leading to end-stage kidney disease. Serum sulfatide levels are linked to severe kidney vasculitis. This study aimed to assess serum sulfatide levels as a marker for classifying and evaluating disease activity in LN. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of patients admitted to our hospital between 2003 and 2022. Serum sulfatide levels were compared between LN patients and controls as well as across LN classes based on the International Society of Nephrology/Renal Pathology Society classification. We also analyzed the association between sulfatide levels and active lesions, the Activity Index, and its components. Results: Serum sulfatide levels were significantly lower in LN patients than in controls (6.90 ± 2.22 vs. 8.34 ± 1.68, P = 0.007). Levels across LN classes were as follows: 9.41 nmol/mL in Class I, 8.21 ± 1.68 nmol/mL in Class II, 7.33 ± 2.25 nmol/mL in Class III, 6.14 ± 1.63 nmol/mL in Class IV, and 7.89 ± 2.12 nmol/mL in Class V, with Class IV having the lowest levels. Serum sulfatides were significantly lower in patients with active lesions (6.38 ± 1.81 vs. 8.23 ± 2.55, P = 0.006) and negatively correlated with the Activity Index (r = -0.51, P < 0.001) and pathological components such as endocapillary hypercellularity, neutrophils/karyorrhexis, and interstitial inflammation (P < 0.001). Conclusions: Serum sulfatide levels were significantly lower in LN patients than in controls and strongly correlated with active lesions and the Activity Index. These findings suggest sulfatide levels as a useful marker for assessing LN disease activity.

Keywords: Lupus Nephritis, sulfatides, Sphingolipids, systemic lupus erythematosus, Vasculitis

Received: 05 Feb 2025; Accepted: 29 May 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Yamaka, Aomura, Harada, Nakajima, Nimura, Hashimoto, Tanaka and Kamijo. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence:
Kosuke Yamaka, Shinshu University, Matsumoto, Japan
Yuji Kamijo, Shinshu University, Matsumoto, Japan

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