Yonsei University · Medicine
Professor Min**-Chan Park's research lab focuses on autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, particularly Takayasu's arteritis (TA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The lab investigates disease mechanisms, biomarkers for disease activity, and long-term outcomes of immunomodulatory therapies, with a strong emphasis on identifying clinical and immunological predictors of disease progression and treatment response. Key research directions include the role of pro-inflammatory cytokines (e.g., IL-18, IL-6), autoantibodies (e.g., AECA), and nuclear receptor pathways (e.g., LXR) in vascular and joint inflammation.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
These findings could provide useful information on the clinical features, angiographic findings, and outcomes in TA, particularly on the assessment of patients at risk of a poor outcome.
Serum IL-18 and IL-6 levels were elevated in patients with TA, especially in those with active disease. Serum IL-18 levels correlated well with disease activity of TA. These results suggest that IL-6 and IL-18 might contribute to the pathogenesis of TA and that IL-18 could be a useful marker for monitoring disease activity of TA.
Restenosis occurred in 31.7% of TA patients after intervention. A lower restenosis rate was observed when the vascular interventions were performed at the stable stage and when post-interventional immunosuppressive treatment was implemented.
This study was designed to investigate the risk of ovarian failure and the pregnancy outcomes in women treated with intravenous cyclophosphamide (IVCYC) pulse therapy for lupus nephritis. Sixty-seven women with proliferative lupus nephritis were studied. The clinical and laboratory data, SLEDAI and damage indices at IVCYC initiation, doses and numbers of IVCYC pulses, pregnancy and fetal outcomes were evaluated. During a follow-up of 74.4+/-20.6 months, amenorrhea occurred in 25 (37.3%) and was
These results indicate that activation of LXRs suppresses the onset of CIA and reduces inflammation and joint destruction in CIA mice. The data could suggest that LXR treatment is an effective prophylactic approach to suppress the evolution of synovitis and resultant joint destruction observed in RA.
IgM AECA and IgG AECA were more prevalent and their titers were higher in patients with TA than in controls, and IgM AECA titers correlated well with the disease activity of TA. Antiphospholipid antibodies were not found significant.
Elevated CTX-I reflects disease activity and loss of femoral BMD while elevated CTX-II levels correlate well with radiographic damage of the spine, suggesting the usefulness of these markers for monitoring disease activity, loss of BMD, and radiographic damage in men with AS.
Our data suggest that statins could be effective in reducing the risk of recurrent thrombosis in patients with thrombotic APS.
Purpose: To determine the levels of bone and cartilage turnover markers in men with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and to investigate their associations with disease activity, bone mineral density, and radiographic damage of the spine. Patients and Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled 35 men with newly diagnosed AS. The bone mineral densities (BMD) of their lumbar spines and proximal femurs, Bath AS Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), and Bath AS Radiographic Index (BASRI) were evaluated. Urin
The BASDAI values 1.9, 3.5 and 4.9 corresponded to the ASDAS-CRP values 1.3, 2.1 and 3.5, respectively. These cut-off values could be useful in clinical studies and real-world practice for determining disease activity status when ASDAS-CRP is unavailable.
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