Erschienen in:
01.02.2008 | Original Article
Interleukin-17 gene expression in patients with rheumatoid arthritis
verfasst von:
Mika Kohno, Akito Tsutsumi, Hiroto Matsui, Makoto Sugihara, Takeshi Suzuki, Mizuko Mamura, Daisuke Goto, Isao Matsumoto, Satoshi Ito, Toru Suguro, Takayuki Sumida
Erschienen in:
Modern Rheumatology
|
Ausgabe 1/2008
Einloggen, um Zugang zu erhalten
Abstract
Interleukin-17 is a proinflammatory cytokine. Recent animal studies have shown that IL-17 plays a role in the initiation and progression of arthritis. However, whether IL-17 has a prominent role in human rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or not remains unclear. Here we investigated the role of IL-17 in patients with RA. cDNA was prepared from knee joint synovial tissues of RA (n = 11) and osteoarthritic (OA, n = 10) patients and PBMC of RA (n = 52) and healthy subjects (n = 34). IL-17 gene expression level was measured by real-time PCR, and was compared with various clinical parameters. IL-17 gene expression in synovial tissues of RA was similar to that in OA. IL-17 gene expression level in PBMC of RA patients was significantly higher than in the control. The response (changes in DAS) to two-week treatment with anti-TNF-α blockers (infliximab or etanercept) did not correlate with changes in IL-17 gene expression levels. The IL-17/TNF-α gene expression ratio at baseline (before treatment) tended to be lower in responders to the treatment. Expression of IL-17 gene in PBMC may be associated with the inflammatory process of RA. IL-17/TNF-α expression ratio is a potentially suitable marker of response to anti-TNF-α therapy.