A new treatment using antibodies may relieve the cutaneous symptoms of lupus.

Experiments showed that a monoclonal antibody, tentatively named VIB7734, developed by Horizon Therapeutics, caused a clinically significant improvement in symptoms in 87% of patients after one month.

According to Medical Express, VIB7734 is a monoclonal antibody - a laboratory-derived protein that acts as an antibody for the immune system.

Lupus is caused by an autoimmune reaction in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's own tissues. Systemic lupus erythematosus can cause inflammation throughout the body, including the skin, joints, kidneys, blood vessels, and the brain. Another form, called cutaneous lupus, affects only the skin, causing rashes and sores, often on the face and scalp.

Corticosteroids, antimalarial drugs, and immunosuppressants like methotrexate are now used to treat these skin symptoms. But these treatments can have serious side effects, and they don't always work. Hence, there is a real need for a new therapy. And if proven effective, VIB7734 will significantly change the quality of life of many people with this condition.