
A Few Good Meds #2: HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE in Lupus
Don’t let the title of this article fool you: it’s not just about Lupus, but paints broad strokes of HCQ’s pleiotropic efficacies. More interestingly, it surveys our current understanding of HCQ’s novel modes of action.
Like Metformin, HCQ has similar wide-ranging benefits on inflammation, lipid metabolism, cardiovascular risk, cancer, aging and subfertility. Which is why it is second on my list of A Few Good Meds
It’s modes of action discovered so far seem to revolve around the innate immune system: lysosomes alkalinisation and stabilisation, inhibition of TLRs (esp TLR9), reduction of IFNgamma/IL1/IL6/TNFalpha, and more recently, TH17 cytokines.
It’s undisputed importance in preventing Lupus flare and progression (such that it is now recommended for life) perhaps attests to the role that innate activation plays in SLE, which till recent times is viewed as a mainly adaptive immunity disorder.
IFNgamma inhibitors for Lupus are looming over the horizon
A Few Good Meds #3: HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE

This EASY-2-READ (for clinicians) summary of HCQ rounds up today’s posts. But the previous one is the MUST-READ!