Richard Furie (Northwell Health, Great Neck, New York, USA) and co-investigators say that “B cells are recognised as key mediators of SLE [systemic lupus erythematosus] pathogenesis,” but previous studies of two type I anti-CD20 antibodies – rituximab and ocrelizumab – did not show improved rates of complete renal response (CRR) when added to standard therapy in patients with LN.

However, the study did not meet its primary endpoint of a dose–response relationship across three doses of the CD40 ligand (CD40L) inhibitor, say Richard Furie (Northwell Health, Great Neck, New York, USA) and co-investigators.

“To hit on every single primary and key secondary is so refreshing in this field”   Click through to watch lead investigator Richard Furie talking about the BLISS-LN trial Rovin took delegates through the results of the AURORA trial of voclosporin, as well as those from the phase 2 AURA-LV study.

Richard Furie discusses the potential benefits of BIIB059, an antibody that blocks blood dendritic cell antigen 2, in the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus and the science behind its phase 2 success.

Richard Furie discusses the potential benefits of BIIB059, an antibody that blocks blood dendritic cell antigen 2, in the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus and the science behind its phase 2 success (4:47).

Commenting on the approval in a press release , BLISS-LN lead investigator Richard Furie (Northwell Health, Great Neck, New York, USA) said that “[w]e have long aspired to enhance outcomes for patients with lupus nephritis,” and “it is gratifying to see the rewards of decades of research.”

Richard Furie on LILAC: BIIB059 improves active joint count in SLE Richard Furie_111120 For the phase 2 trial, 132 patients with SLE were randomly assigned to receive subcutaneous BIIB059 450 mg or placebo every 4 weeks for 20 weeks (with an extra dose at week 2) in addition to standard care.

This BLISS-LN trial demonstrated the potential of belimumab as an add-on therapy for patients with lupus nephritis; lead investigator Richard Furie discusses why these findings are important for this patient population (8:28).

This is “the largest lupus nephritis study performed to date,” showing that “the addition of belimumab safely provided benefit beyond that of standard therapy alone,” said lead investigator Richard Furie (Northwell Health, Great Neck, New York, USA).

“However, several secondary endpoints, including BICLA response, sustained oral corticosteroid dose reduction, and organ-specific measures of skin and joint responses, suggest the possibility of clinical benefit of anifrolumab, although the statistical significance of these differences was not formally assessed,” note Richard Furie (Northwell Health, Great Neck, New York, USA) and co-researchers.

Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, USA Moderators:  Kenneth Kalunian, USA; Saira Sheikh, USA B Cell Therapies: How the Past Informs the Future  David Isenberg, UK The Interferon Story: More to Come  Richard Furie, USA Looking to the Future of Lupus Therapies Daniel Wallace, USA

registrationCTA Monday 11 November: 11:00–12:30, Hall B1, Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, USA Presenter: Richard Furie, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, New York, USA In the phase III TULIP-1 study, patients with moderate-to-severe systemic lupus erythematosus were randomly assigned to receive intravenous anifrolumab – a human monoclonal antibody that binds the type I interferon receptor – at a dose of 150 mg or 300 mg every 4 weeks or placebo in addition to standard-of-care treatment.

Lupus nephritis is the most common organ-threatening complication of systemic lupus erythematosus, and current treatment regimens are only partially effective and are potentially toxic. In this editorial, the authors focus on emerging therapeutics to treat this disease.

The driver for complete response was proteinuria, with about 40% of patients in either group achieving the criteria for that endpoint, said Richard Furie (Northwell Health, New York, USA), presenting the findings at the 2018 EULAR meeting in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

In the original phase III BLISS-76 study , patients from Europe and America with autoantibody-positive, active SLE were randomly assigned to receive 76 weeks of treatment with intravenous belimumab at a dose of 1 or 10 mg/kg, or placebo, in addition to standard care, say Richard Furie (Hofstra Northwell School of Medicine, Great Neck, New York, USA) and study co-authors.