TNF and systemic lupus erythematosus: Recent research [19] has also elaborated on the conflicting evidence on the role of TNF-α in SLE, with studies showing elevated levels of TNF-α implicated in SLE [20], relation between TNF- α promoter polymorphism and SLE susceptibility [21], and increased TNF-α levels found to be associated with disease severity [22] all supporting the role of increased TNF-α levels in SLE pathophysiology.