Herbal Formula SS-1 Increases Tear Secretion for Sjögren's Syndrome.

Background: Sjögren's syndrome (SS) is an autoimmune inflammatory disease that primarily affects the exocrine glands, leading to glandular dysfunction. The hallmark symptoms of SS are dry eyes and mouth, compromising the quality of life of patients and decreasing their capacity to perform their daily activities. Objective: This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of the herbal formula SS-1 for its potential therapeutic benefits for patients with Sjögren's syndrome. Materials and Methods: The bioactivity profile of SS-1 was determined using four different SS-1 concentrations across 12 human primary cell systems of the BioMAP profile. After that, a randomized, double-blind, crossover, placebo-controlled trial was performed including 57 patients treated with SS-1 for 28 weeks. Results: Biologically multiplexed activity profiling in cell-based models indicated that SS-1 exerted anti-proliferative activity in B cells and promoted anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory activity. In the clinical trial, Schirmer's test results revealed significant improvements in both eyes, with increases of 3.42 mm (95% CI, 2.44-4.41 mm) and 3.45 mm (95% CI, 2.32-4.59 mm), respectively, and a significant reduction in artificial tear use, which was -1.38 times/day, 95% CI, -1.95 to -0.81 times/day. Moreover, the increases in B-cell activating factor (BAFF) and B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) levels were dampened by 53.20% (295.29 versus 555.02 pg/ml) and 58.33% (99.16 versus 169.99 pg/ml), respectively. Conclusion: SS-1 treatment significantly inhibited B-cell maturation antigen. No serious drug-related adverse effects were observed. Oral SS-1 administration may be a complementary treatment for Sjögren's syndrome.

Chinese herbal medicine SS-1 inhibits T cell activation and abrogates TH responses in Sjögren's syndrome.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Sjögren's syndrome (SS) is an autoimmune disease and its conventional treatment has exhibited limited therapeutic efficacy. Traditional Chinese medicine has been demonstrated to ameliorate the sicca symptoms of SS by decreasing the level of TH1 and TH2 cytokines and increasing salivary flow rate. A newly designed traditional Chinese medicine, SS-1, showed improved efficacy in alleviating the dryness symptoms of SS patients in the National Taiwan SS cohort investigation. Here, we investigated the effect of SS-1 on T cell responses. METHODS: SS-1 was authenticated and its major compounds were verified by high-performance liquid chromatography. We examined the effects of SS-1 on the activation and TH1, TH2, and TH17 polarization of murine T cells. We also determined the level of TH1, TH2, and TH17 cytokine RNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of SS patients before and after SS-1 treatment. RESULTS: SS-1 treatment inhibits the activation and TH1, TH2, and IL-17A+IFNγ+ TH polarization of murine T cells. SS-1 treatment also significantly reduces IFN-γ, IL-4, and IL-13 expression, and moderately reduces IL-17A expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of SS patients. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that SS-1 inhibits T cell activation and diminishes TH1, TH2, and IL-17+IFN-γ+ TH responses in SS patients.

Changes in hepatitis B virus surface antibody titer and risk of hepatitis B reactivation in HBsAg-negative/HBcAb-positive patients undergoing biologic therapy for rheumatic diseases: a prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Our aim was to investigate dynamic changes in hepatitis B virus (HBV) surface antibody (HBsAb) titer and the associated risk of HBV reactivation and clinical course in patients with HBV surface antigen negative/core antibody positive (HBsAg-/HBcAb+) serostatus during antirheumatic therapy with biologic agents. METHODS: In a prospective study from January 2013 to June 2017, we monitored the HBV serostatus of HBsAg-/HBcAb+ patients undergoing biologic therapy for rheumatic diseases. From HBsAb titers at baseline and subsequent time points, we calculated the person-years (PY) contributed by patients with different HBsAb levels: < 10 mIU/mL (negative); 10-100 mIU/mL (low); and > 100 mIU/mL (high). We analyzed the incidence of detectable HBV DNA and HBV reactivation in each group, and documented the clinical courses of patients. RESULTS: Among 380 participants, 83 (21.8%) had baseline HBsAb < 10 mIU/mL, 156 (41.1%) HBsAb 10-100 mIU/mL, and 141 (37.1%) HBsAb > 100 mIU/mL. Total PY at study end were 169.3 PY from the HBsAb-negative group, 362.7 PY from the low-titer group, and 285.8 PY from the high-titer group. Seventeen patients had detectable HBV DNA, with respective incidence rates in negative, low- and high-titer groups of 4.7/100 PY, 2.5/100 PY, and 0/100 PY. Two HBsAb-negative patients subsequently developed HBV reactivation, an incidence of 1.2/100 PY. CONCLUSIONS: The risk of HBV reactivation varied with HBsAb titer, which changed during biologic therapy. Neither HBV DNA nor reactivation were detected in patients with HBsAb > 100 mIU/mL, whereas HBV DNA without reactivation occurred periodically in patients with HBsAb 10-100 mIU/mL; HBsAb-negative serostatus was associated with a risk of HBV reactivation.

Modulation of Endothelial Injury Biomarkers by Traditional Chinese Medicine LC in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Patients Receiving Standard Treatments.

LC is an herbal remedy effectively reduced therapeutic dosage of glucocorticoid for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients in clinical trial (ISRCTN81818883). This translational research examined the impact of LC on biomarkers of endothelial injury in the enrolled subjects. Fifty seven patients with SLE were randomized to receive standard treatment without or with LC supplements. Blood samples were taken serially for quantification of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), circulating endothelial cells (CECs) and serological factors. The proportion of EPCs in the placebo group continued to increase during trial and was further elevated after withdrawal of standard treatment. The EPC ratio of LC group remained stationary during the entire observation period. The CEC ratio in placebo group exhibited an increasing trend whereas that in LC group declined. The ratio of apoptotic CECs had an increasing trend in both groups, to a lesser extent in LC group. After treatment, the levels of VEGF and IL-18 have a trend declined to a level lower in the LC group than the placebo group. No significant alteration was noted in serum levels of IFN-α, IL-1ß and IL-6. The reduction of the steroid dosage by adding LC might be correlated with less extensive endothelial injury in SLE patients.

Better short-term clinical response to etanercept in Chinese than Caucasian patients with active ankylosing spondylitis.

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) inhibitors including etanercept have been demonstrated to be very effective in severe ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in Caucasian patients. However, clinical efficacy of etanercept to treat active AS in Chinese patients has not been reported. In this study, a prospective, open-label trial of etanercept (25 mg BIW), involving 46 AS patients from 16 medical centers of Taiwan, was conducted. Questionnaire was utilized to record demographic data and clinical parameters, including Bath AS Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), Bath AS Functional Index (BASFI), Bath AS Global Index (BASGI), Assessment in Ankylosing Spondylitis (ASAS) 20, 50, and 70, and others, before and at different time intervals after etanercept treatment. Laboratory tests including blood chemistry, hematology, urine analysis, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and C-reactive protein (CRP) were done at baseline and at weeks 4, 8, and 12. In this 12-week study, etanercept demonstrated rapid and significant improvement in the ASAS20 response criteria (91.3%), at as early as 2 weeks of therapy (71.3%). Partial remission of AS was achieved in 49.3% of patients after 12 weeks of treatment. Disease activity (BASDAI) and function (BASFI) were also significantly improved after 12 weeks etanercept treatment (p < 0.0001 and p < 0.0001, respectively). In addition, significant increase of chest expansion (2.77 ± 1.69 cm versus 3.56 ± 1.82 cm, p = 0.0004) and lumbar flexion (2.11 ± 2.76 cm versus 2.58 ± 3.42 cm, p = 0.0075) and significant reduction of occiput-to-wall distance (6.59 ± 7.14 cm versus 5.32 ± 6.65 cm, p = 0.0006) were also demonstrated. Both ESR and CRP declined significantly after patients were treated with etanercept. There were no severe adverse effects during the treatment period. Etanercept is generally safe, well tolerated, and effective in Chinese patients with severe AS. Clinical efficacy, including partial remission and BASDAI, is even better in Chinese than in Caucasian patients. Further study is required to assess long-term efficacy and safety in Chinese patients with AS.

Role of new population of peripheral CD11c(+)CD8(+) T cells and CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory T cells during acute and remission stages in rheumatoid arthritis patients.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a CD4(+)-dependent chronic systemic inflammatory disease with autoimmune features. Autoreactive CD4(+) T-cell activation can result in autoimmune diseases. One of the key regulators is the CD4(+)CD25(high) regulatory T (Treg) cell. In an animal arthritis model, CD11c(+)CD8(+) T cells were found to be elevated, and could suppress pathogenic CD4(+) T cells after cross-linking with CD137. The purpose of this study was to compare the expression of CD137, CD4(+)CD25(high) Treg cells, and CD11c(+)CD8(+) in the peripheral blood T lymphocytes of RA patients during active and remissive states, and evaluate the correlation with disease activity. METHODS: Thirty nine RA patients treated at the rheumatology outpatient clinic at the Changhua Christian Hospital were assessed clinically for disease activity and classified as either highly active or remissive by the Disease Activity Score 28. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated from these patients and compared against normal controls. RESULTS: The presence of CD11c(+)CD8(+) T cells or the expression of CD137 molecules in peripheral blood cells was not related to disease activity. In contrast, CD4(+)CD25(high) Treg cell levels were increased significantly in patients with active RA compared with patients with remissive RA or controls (p<0.05). These lymphocytes were intact, without evidence of apoptosis. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that CD4(+)CD25(high) Treg cells play an important role in modulating RA disease activity and can serve as a parameter of disease activity.