# Epidemiology of Lupus:  Longitudinal Studies in Population-Based Cohorts - 2019

> **NIH ALLCDC U01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · 2021 · $900,000

## Abstract

We propose to extend the California Lupus Epidemiology Study (CLUES), which has established a
racially/ethnically diverse cohort of over 400 individuals with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The CLUES
cohort builds on the successful California Lupus Surveillance Project, which established the incidence and
prevalence of SLE in San Francisco County. Individuals identified through the surveillance effort were invited to
participate in the longitudinal CLUES cohort. The study currently includes i) extensive clinical data, including
physician-assessed measures of SLE disease activity, manifestations, and outcomes such as damage; ii)
biologic data, including genetic, epigenetic, gene expression and environmental exposure information; and iii)
data from structured interviews with participants covering sociodemographics, healthcare access and gaps,
symptoms, disability, and a wide variety of patient-reported outcomes. This exceptionally broad and deep data
collection has catalyzed a wide spectrum of SLE research studies, ranging from the examination of clinical and
patient-reported outcomes in SLE to studies of DNA methylation across diverse racial/ethnic populations.
Through data collection, analyses and dissemination, the overarching goal of CLUES is to advance our
understanding of the natural history, treatment, outcomes and biology of SLE among diverse racial/ethnic and
socioeconomic populations. In the renewal period, our aims are 1) lo continue longitudinal data collection on
CLUES participants, including comprehensive patient-reported data, 2) to enhance and maintain a state-of-the-art
biospecimen repository and provide access lo this resource to investigators, 3) to catalyze research on health
disparities in vulnerable populations with SLE, including racial/ethnic minorities and those with low
socioeconomic status, serving as a hub that brings together investigators and fosters high-impact, novel
epidemiologic studies of the disease, and 4) to conduct two special projects, one examining the biology of SLE
disease flares through investigations of epigenetic modifications during flares and after their resolution, and one
examining the association of psychosocial stress with disease activity and flares. The overall project leverages
outstanding institutional resources and builds on the proven track-record of the investigators in building a
successful administrative and management infrastructure for CLUES, developing and maintaining longitudinal
cohort studies, and creating effective systems for sharing clinical data and biospecimens. CLUES is unique
because there are currently no population-based studies of Asians or Hispanic-Americans with SLE, two groups
that are disproportionately affected by the disease and who comprise a significant and growing proportion of the
U.S. population. In addition, the proposed special projects address disease flares, an area that is ripe for
research and central lo advancing knowledge about the natural history, o...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10201409
- **Project number:** 5U01DP006486-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO
- **Principal Investigator:** Maria Dall'Era
- **Activity code:** U01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** ALLCDC
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $900,000
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-09-01 → 2022-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10201409

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10201409, Epidemiology of Lupus:  Longitudinal Studies in Population-Based Cohorts - 2019 (5U01DP006486-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10201409. Licensed CC0.

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