Brief Report: Interleukin‐38 Exerts Antiinflammatory Functions and Is Associated With Disease Activity in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Abstract

This is the first study of the function of endogenous IL-38, and the data suggest that IL-38 may be protective in SLE. A strong association between IL-38 and SLE severity suggests that IL-38 expression is driven by processes linked to SLE pathogenesis. Exploitation of the regulatory effects of IL-38 may represent a promising therapeutic strategy in SLE.