SOLUBLE FAS (APO-1, CD95) AND SOLUBLE FAS LIGAND IN RHEUMATIC DISEASES

Objective. To assess levels of soluble Fas (sFas) and soluble Fas liga nd (sFas-L) in sera from patients with various rheumatic diseases: sys temic lupus erythematosus (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic s clerosis (SSc), polymyositis/dermatomyositis (PM/DM), mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD), and Sjogren's syndrome (SS). Methods. Levels o f sFas and sFas-L were determined by a sandwich enzyme-linked immunoso rbent assay. Results. In SLE, PM/DM, MCTD, and SS, sFas levels were si gnificantly higher compared with normal controls, Levels of sFas in th e SLE patients were significantly higher than in patients with other r heumatic diseases, Levels of sFas-L were significantly increased in SS patients, SLE and RA patients with high levels sFas-L tended to have high levels of sFas, while sFas and sFasL levels did not correlate in patients with other diseases, In some of the SLE patients, sFas and sF as-L levels decreased following steroid therapy. Conclusion. Serum sFa s and sFas-L levels were significantly higher in some rheumatic diseas e patients. Since these changes are complex in these rheumatic disease s, it may be difficult to directly relate sFas and sFasL to their path ogenesis.