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Biomarkers in Psoriatic Arthritis: Recent Progress

  • Psoriatic Arthritis (O FitzGerald and P Helliwell, Section Editors)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is an inflammatory arthritis associated with psoriasis. About a quarter of patients with psoriasis of the skin will develop PsA, although it is currently challenging—if not impossible—to determine a priori which individuals will progress. Identification of biomarkers for screening, disease activity, joint damage, treatment response and comorbidities are therefore perceived as important clinical needs in the field. Over the last few years, several lines of investigation have advanced our knowledge of new markers for PsA and its outcomes, including genomic, proteomic, cellular and tissue studies. Imaging studies utilizing ultrasonography have been applied to better understand the natural history of the disease. Novel biomarkers, such as soluble proteins and microbiomics, are also being described. Although no biomarker has yet been validated for use in clinical practice, discovery studies are in progress and validation cohorts are being designed. In this report, we review the latest progress in biomarker research in PsA and its potential implications in pathogenesis, diagnosis and therapy.

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Conflict of Interest

Vinod Chandran declares that he is supported by the Psoriatic Arthritis Program, University Health Network as well as the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto. His research is supported by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Abbvie Canada and the Krembil Foundation.

Jose U. Scher declares that support for this work comes from Grant No. K23AR064318 from National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS); the New York University Psoriatic Arthritis Center (Division of Rheumatology and Department of Medicine, New York University School of Medicine); and from The Riley Family Foundation.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

    Vinod Chandran

  2. Psoriatic Arthritis Program, Centre for Prognosis Studies in the Rheumatic Diseases, Toronto Western Hospital, University Health Network, 1E 416, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5T 2S8

    Vinod Chandran

  3. Arthritis Clinic and Psoriatic Arthritis Center, Division of Rheumatology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA

    Jose U. Scher

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  1. Vinod Chandran
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Correspondence to Vinod Chandran.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Psoriatic Arthritis

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Chandran, V., Scher, J.U. Biomarkers in Psoriatic Arthritis: Recent Progress. Curr Rheumatol Rep 16, 453 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11926-014-0453-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11926-014-0453-4

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