Meng Y, et al. - In systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients, researchers examined the clinical impact and functional implications of thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1) and anti-thrombospondin-1 autoantibodies (ATSA). For this investigation, they measured serum levels of TSP-1 and ATSA by ELISA in 138 adult SLE patients and 60 healthy controls. In SLE patients vs healthy controls, TSP-1 concentrations were significantly lower. Compared to those with inactive disease, patients with active SLE displayed higher ATSA positivity. In SLE autoimmunity, TSP-1 might play an anti-inflammatory and immunoregulatory role. ATSA increases were found more frequently in disease-active patients and were related to more severe clinical manifestations, implicating its antagonistic role on TSP-1 and its involvement in the pathogenesis of SLE.