Abstract: The levels of urinary neopterin in 30 patients with SLE were determined by reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatgraphy(HPLC). The results showed: (1) the levels of urinary neopterin in 30 patients with SLE were significantly higher than those in 20 controls. (2) The concentrations of urinary neopterin in SLE patients were significantly correlated with the disease activity, they decreased after efficacious treatment with reduced disease activity. (3) There was significant positive correlation between urinary neopterin concentration and erythrocyte sedimentation rate, but there were no statistical relations between urinary neopterin levels and ANA, antibody to ds-DNA, or plasma C3 levels. These results indicate that urinary neopterin may be used as an index for the assessment of disease activity in patients with SLE and monitoring therapeutic effect.

Key words: Lupus erythematosus,systemic, Neopterin