DxTerity Announces Presentations from Lupus and Multiple Sclerosis Studies at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 21, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- DxTerity, a molecular information and diagnostics company developing at-home RNA monitoring blood tests for immune-mediated diseases, today announced that data from systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and multiple sclerosis (MS) studies will be presented at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting being held October 20-24, 2018 in Chicago, IL. In the LIFT and EMPOWER studies, researchers evaluated interferon gene expression levels in participants with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and multiple sclerosis (MS) respectively, using DxTerity's research-developed Autoimmune Profile Test (AIP) with the patented DxCollect^® Fingerstick Collection Kit that stabilizes RNA at ambient temperature with self-collected blood samples.

"We are excited to share initial results from studies that utilized a from-home autoimmune profile test which is designed to help physicians improve autoimmune disease management," said Bob Terbrueggen, PhD, CEO and founder, DxTerity. "From-home access to patients with autoimmune disease opens up opportunities for remote care and regular disease monitoring at the biological level."

Key findings to be presented:

• How the Autoimmune Profile Test (AIP) provides high precision, gene expression analysis of 12 immune related disease pathways including type 1 interferon (IFN) levels in a low-cost, at-home blood test
• How a direct-to-patient recruitment model is uniquely successful at rapidly enrolling individuals with autoimmune diseases into clinical studies
• Demonstration of statistically significant relation of Type 1 IFN with disease state, ethnicity, and age of participants.

A summary of DxTerity's scientific presentations at the ACR/ARHP annual meeting are as follows.

Scientific Presentations

Title: Type 1 Interferon Levels Correlate with Age of Diagnosis and Ethnicity in Systemic Lupus Erythematous
Abstract #: 917
Date: Sunday, October 21, 2018, 4:30PM-6:00PM

Type 1 interferon (IFN) expression has been shown to correlate with disease severity in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). 36.8% of patients with SLE were found to be high while only 20% of MS patients were. Moreover, High IFN was associated with ethnicity and age at time of diagnosis in the SLE cohort. IFN levels were higher in African Americans (68.1%) and Asians (90.6%) compared to Caucasians (31%), and higher in those diagnosed at less than 18 years of age (70.4%) compared to disease diagnosis between ages 18-30 (45.4%) and diagnosis at over 30 years of age (27.3%). These data correlated with published literature of higher disease severity in those subgroups. The LIFT study demonstrated stratification of individuals with SLE based on their IFN expression levels and the potential for from-home measurement of type 1 interferon.

Title: Online Direct-to-Patient Recruitment for Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Results in Rapid Enrollment
Abstract #: 2193
Date: Tuesday, October 23, 2018, 9:00AM-11:00AM

Online direct-to-patient recruitment resulted in rapid enrollment for a study involving participants with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Through Facebook and four online bloggers, greater than 1,000 participants with lupus were enrolled in less than 6 weeks. The study virality resulted in a 40% increase in enrolled participants at no additional marketing cost. With a rural area participation rate similar to the national distribution, online recruitment may have captured individuals who normally lack access to join a study. Bloggers provided an engaged group of patients with a higher percent enrollment compared to Facebook, 45.4% from click-to-qualified enrolled compared to 4.3%, possibly due to increased trust within the lupus blogger community and better targeting. Online direct-to-patient recruitment is an effective model that can help drive down research costs.

About Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE)
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the most common form of lupus, an incurable autoimmune disease affecting approximately 1.5 million individuals in the U.S., primarily women of color. SLE produces autoantibodies that lead the body to attack its own tissue and organs. Symptoms include painful or swollen joints, extreme fatigue, fever, skin rash, and organ damage.

About DxTerity
DxTerity is a molecular information and diagnostics company bringing precision medicine to autoimmune with from-home RNA monitoring. DxTerity also provides services and technologies to partner organizations, including population-scale genomic studies. For more information, please visit DxTerity.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook.

The DxCollect^® Fingerstick Collection Kit is for Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedure.

SOURCE DxTerity

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