SLE is not a one-size-fits-all disease.

In this Viewpoint we discuss how experimental medicine applied in the setting of clinical trials can address unmet need in the prototypic autoimmune disease systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) to improve outcomes for patients.

[1]  Linden J. Gearing,et al.  Immunosuppressant exposure confounds gene expression analysis in systemic lupus erythematosus , 2022, Frontiers in Immunology.

[2]  M. Petri,et al.  Scoring personalized molecular portraits identify Systemic Lupus Erythematosus subtypes and predict individualized drug responses, symptomatology and disease progression , 2022, Briefings Bioinform..

[3]  C. Terao,et al.  Distinct transcriptome architectures underlying lupus establishment and exacerbation , 2022, Cell.

[4]  Junjie Gao,et al.  Comparative Effectiveness of Rituximab and Common Induction Therapies for Lupus Nephritis: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis , 2022, Frontiers in Immunology.

[5]  G. Schett,et al.  IgA Complexes Induce Neutrophil Extracellular Trap Formation More Potently Than IgG Complexes , 2022, Frontiers in Immunology.

[6]  P. Lipsky,et al.  Deconvoluting the heterogeneity of SLE: The contribution of ancestry. , 2021, The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology.

[7]  Lara A. Kahale,et al.  2021 American College of Rheumatology Guideline for the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis , 2021, Arthritis & rheumatology.

[8]  G. Schett,et al.  IgA subclasses have different effector functions associated with distinct glycosylation profiles , 2020, Nature Communications.

[9]  K. Sarsour,et al.  Rituximab utilization for approved and off‐label nononcology indications and patients’ experiences with the Patient Alert Card , 2020, Pharmacology research & perspectives.

[10]  R. V. van Vollenhoven.  String of successful trials in SLE: have we cracked the code? , 2020, Lupus Science & Medicine.

[11]  C. Howald,et al.  Combined genetic and transcriptome analysis of patients with SLE: distinct, targetable signatures for susceptibility and severity , 2019, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[12]  M. Ng,et al.  Machine learning applied to whole‐blood RNA‐sequencing data uncovers distinct subsets of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus , 2019, bioRxiv.

[13]  E. Yen,et al.  Brief Report: Lupus—An Unrecognized Leading Cause of Death in Young Females: A Population‐Based Study Using Nationwide Death Certificates, 2000–2015 , 2018, Arthritis & rheumatology.

[14]  T. Rabelink,et al.  FRI0330 Rituximab therapy in sle: early retreatment is associated with lower disease activity and a reduction in corticosteroid use , 2018, Journal of autoimmunity.

[15]  J. Simard,et al.  The Representation of Gender and Race/Ethnic Groups in Randomized Clinical Trials of Individuals with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus , 2018, Current Rheumatology Reports.

[16]  I. Bruce,et al.  The potential overlapping populations for treatment with belimumab and rituximab using current NHS England and National Institute for Health and Care Excellence Guidelines in England and Wales. , 2017, Rheumatology.

[17]  A. Clarke,et al.  The global burden of SLE: prevalence, health disparities and socioeconomic impact , 2016, Nature Reviews Rheumatology.

[18]  Virginia Pascual,et al.  Personalized Immunomonitoring Uncovers Molecular Networks that Stratify Lupus Patients , 2016, Cell.

[19]  D. Isenberg,et al.  Elevated serum BAFF levels are associated with rising anti-double-stranded DNA antibody levels and disease flare following B cell depletion therapy in systemic lupus erythematosus. , 2013, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[20]  M. Ehrenstein,et al.  If the treatment works, do we need to know why?: the promise of immunotherapy for experimental medicine , 2007, The Journal of experimental medicine.

[21]  I. Bruce,et al.  The British Society for Rheumatology guideline for the management of systemic lupus erythematosus in adults , 2018, Rheumatology.