Literature Highlights - August 2023
AURORA 2, Voclosporin, Lupus Nephritis, BLISS-LN, Belimumab
Find coverage of the latest original articles on Lupus, focusing on those with data on therapeutic interventions and those that have clinical impact.
This activity is supported by an educational grant from AstraZeneca.
AURORA 2, Voclosporin, Lupus Nephritis, BLISS-LN, Belimumab
Ann Rheum Dis. 2023 DOI: 10.1136/ard-2023-224242 Epub ahead of print
Data revealed a renoprotective effect of SGLT2 inhibitors by reducing proteinuria and preserving renal function in the murine MRL/lpr lupus model.
Arthritis Rheumatol. 2023 DOI: 10.1002/art.42657 Epub ahead of print
AURORA 2 demonstrated the safety and tolerability of continued administration of voclosporin over 3 years of treatment in patients with LN.
Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2023 Jul;75(7):1399–1408 DOI: 10.1002/acr.25007
Pooled analysis of data from the AURA-LV phase 2 and AURORA 1 phase 3 trials of voclosporin in patients with active LN demonstrated that significantly more patients achieved a complete renal response at 1 year in the voclosporin than the control group (p<0.0001), with no observation of new safety signals.
doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/kead253 Epub ahead of print
The protection conferred from belimumab against renal flare development in patients treated for extra-renal SLE appears enhanced when administered along with antimalarials (AMA).
Lupus Sci. Med 2023;10:e000907 doi 10.1136/lupus-2023-000907 Epub ahead of print
This retrospective study by Neupane, et al. compared belimumab and anifrolumab efficacy at 52 weeks in SLE patients. It concluded that belimumab and anifrolumab have equal efficacy, but further studies would be needed for specific patient demographics.
Expert Opin Investig Drugs 2023;15:1-9 doi 10.1080/13543784.2023.2212154 Epub ahead of print
Cho, et al. discuss the current challenges in the approval of CLE drugs and suggest outcome measures that could streamline the process. They also discuss the pharmacodynamics of litifilimab and the current status of clinical trials.
Lancet. 2023 doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(22)02546-6 Epub ahead of print
Negative results of SLE-BRAVE-II trial show that evidence for the efficacy of baricitinib in SLE is inconclusive.
Ann Rheum Dis. 2023. doi: 10.1136/ard-2022-222748 Epub ahead of print
Post-hoc anaylsis of TULIP trials shows that, compared with placebo, anifrolumab treatment was associated with earlier, more frequent, and more prolonged and sustained lupus low disease activity state (LLDAS).
Joint Bone Spine. 2023. Epub ahead of print
Systematic review of new biologics and targeted therapies in systemic lupus identifies a highly diversified pipeline of investigational drugs that will hopefully enable a more optimal treat-to-target strategy.
Clin J Am Soc Nephrol. 2022;17:1620–1630 doi: 10.2215/CJN.02520322
This 28-week, open-label extension of BLISS-LN found no new safety signals and maintained efficacy with belimumab, in patients with lupus nephritis.