A lupus explanation

The cellular defect that underlies the autoimmune disease lupus may finally have been uncovered. Overactive dendritic cells may be inciting attacks on the patient's own tissues.In lupus, the immune system batters the skin, kidneys, brain, and other organs, but the stimulus for the attack has eluded explanation. Jacques Banchereau (Baylor Institute for Immunology Research, Dallas, TX) and colleagues found that serum from lupus patients spurs monocytes to mature into dendritic cells that may trigger an autoimmune reaction. The dendritic cells gobbled up fragments of dead body cells and presented them to autologous CD4 T cells.

What stimulates the maturation of monocytes? The research implicated α interferon, which is produced by one class of dendritic cells and is elevated in people with lupus. According to Banchereau, the results suggest that hyperactive dendritic cells, driven by...