We have previously observed that expression of ERα gene and protein in lupus patients is significantly higher than in healthy controls and that estradiol up-regulates calcineurin expression via over-expression of ERα gene in SLE.
The choice of inhibitors of transcription factor NF-κBp65 and selective modulators for estrogen receptor alpha are proposed areas of lupus drug discovery research.
Peripheral blood T cells and monocytes and B cell lines derived from patients with lupus express estrogen receptor transcripts similar to those of normal cells.
A model is proposed that suggests estrogen, acting through the estrogen receptor, enhances T cell activation in women with lupus resulting in amplified T-B cells interactions, B cell activation and autoantibody production.