At the department we are engaged in education and advanced research within several clinical specialities. With a staff of 180 members and more than 300 associated collaborators at the University hospital, the department is the largest at the Medical Faculty.
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Systemisk lupus erythamtosus (SLE)

New article published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics by Prof. Lars Rönnblom's research team

Patients with Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have a 10 times increased risk of cardiovascular disease and women with SLE between the ages 35-44 years have an up to 50 fold increased risk of myocardial infarction compared to the general population. In the present study, we investigated more than 800 SLE patients and found that variants in the interferon regulatory factor 8 (IRF8) gene was strongly associated with myocardial infarction, increased intima-media thickness and presence of carotid plaques. The identified IRF8 allele remained as a risk factor after adjustment for traditional cardiovascular disease risk factors We also investigated the functional consequences of the identified IRF8 gene variants. The study highlight the fact that non-traditional risk factors for arteriosclerosis are important in SLE and that new therapeutic strategies are important for improving coronary heart morbidity and mortality among these patients.

För mer information läs artikeln "Coronary Heart Disease in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Is Associated with Interferon Regulatory Factor 8 Gene Variants" i tidskriften Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics.