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NEW YORK, Jan. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Jane Salmon, M.D.,
a researcher at the
Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, leveraged data from preliminary
research supported by the Alliance for Lupus Research (ALR), a leading
source
of private funding for lupus research, to gain a $5.7 million award
from NIAMS
(NIH). The grant will be used to identify predictors of pregnancy
outcomes in
patients with lupus as a means of preventing recurrent miscarriage
and other
pregnancy complications.
In 2000, Dr. Salmon set out to prove a hypothesis about inflammation
and
pregnancy loss that challenged conventional thinking. Seeing the
potential of
her novel idea, ALR committed $1.5 million to support Dr. Salmon's
work,
allowing her to quickly progress with preliminary studies that set
the stage
for the NIH grant. Additional support was provided by The Mary Kirkland
Center for Lupus Research.
"We are extremely proud of the progress that Dr. Salmon has
made with her
study," said Barbara Boyts, the president of the Alliance for
Lupus Research.
"It exemplifies the type of targeted, innovative research that
the Alliance
for Lupus Research will continue to support because of its potential
to make a
significant impact on the lives of lupus patients in the quickest
timeframe."
The NIH grant will fund the PROMISSE Study (Predictors of pRegnancy
Outcome: bioMarkers In antiphospholipid antibody Syndrome and Systemic
lupus
Erythematosus). Led by Dr. Salmon, PROMISSE is a prospective observational
study of 400 pregnant patients, enrolled at six major clinical centers,
and
grouped and analyzed according to the presence or absence of antiphospholipid
antibodies (aPL) and preexisting SLE. Dr. Salmon aims to utilize
data from
this study to identify predictors of poor fetal outcome in humans,
in
particular those with lupus. Studies in animal models of aPL-associated
pregnancy loss indicated that activation of complement and release
of
inflammatory mediators was responsible for fetal injury. The new
project
should provide the necessary groundwork for an interventional trial
of
complement inhibition in patients at risk for fetal loss, and may
eventually
result in means of preventing recurrent miscarriage in lupus patients.
During the next five years, Dr. Salmon will lead a core group of
investigators with recognized expertise in SLE and aPL pregnancy,
high-risk
obstetrics, the basic biology of complement, and statistical methods
in SLE
studies, including ALR-funded investigators Timothy W. Behrens,
M.D., of the
University of Minnesota and Michelle A. Petri, M.D., M.PH of Johns
Hopkins
University, to carry out this study. Researchers will obtain and
analyze
detailed medical and obstetrical information during the course of
pregnancy
and serial blood specimens for complement and cytokine assays, to
identify
predictors of poor fetal outcome. RNA will be analyzed to elucidate
temporal
changes in gene expression during the course of complicated and
uncomplicated
pregnancies and placentas will be studied to characterize tissue
pathology and
mediators of tissue injury.
"We believe that our study will provide insight into the mechanisms
of
complement-mediated inflammatory disorders and discover a means
to prevent,
control, or modify the conditions causing pregnancy loss in patients
with
lupus," said Dr. Salmon.
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), commonly called lupus, is an
autoimmune disease in which antibodies attack the kidneys and other
organs.
Potentially fatal, it strikes primarily young women.
A 501 (c)(3) organization, the Alliance For Lupus Research is chaired
by
Robert Wood Johnson IV, of the Johnson & Johnson healthcare
family and owner
of the NFL's New York Jets. Since its inception in 1999, ALR has
committed
more than $26 million to lupus research, and has made remarkable
gains toward
unlocking the mysteries of this disease. ALR directs one hundred
percent of
funds raised to peer-reviewed research and scientific programs.
For more
information on the Alliance for Lupus Research, visit
http://www.lupusresearch.org or call (800) 867-1743.
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