CRP and inflammatory response: We postulated that the strong ability of ∆sVCAM-1 as a biomarker of clinical response in SLE, compared with sICAM-1 or sE-selectin which are also shed from activated endothelial cells, or CRP which is a known marker of vascular inflammation [27], suggested that circulating VCAM-1 levels could reflect factors other than endothelial inflammation, such as aberrant lymphocyte homeostasis in active SLE.