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Synovial CXCL4, CXVL7 cytokines may be elevated in patients with early RA
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Levels of cytokines CXCL4 and CXCL7 may be higher in the synovial fluid of patients with early symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, according to recently published research.
Data from the Birmingham Early Arthritis Cohort (BEACON) study in the U.K. were collected for patients with at least one new swollen joint within 12 weeks who had not been treated with any disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) or glucocorticoids prior to referral. Nine patients who entered the study had resolving arthritis, 17 patients had early rheumatoid arthritis (RA), 12 had established RA and 10 control participants had no inflammation. Patients with a swollen joint were specifically recruited in the presence of a joint amenable to ultrasound-guided biopsy.
Joints were evaluated using a Siemens Acuson Antare scanner with multifrequency (5 MHz to 13 MHz) linear array transducers. In the presence of gray-scale synovitis, ultrasound-guided biopsy was conducted to collect tissue from the joint. The tissue was analyzed for the expression of 117 cytokines and molecules related to cytokines using TaqMan low-density, real-time, polymerase chain reaction arrays.
Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn’s post-test analysis identified 22 genes that were differentially expressed between the participant groups, 18 of which were highly expressed in patients with established RA compared with participants with no inflammation.
Both CXCL4 and CXCL7 mRNA levels were significantly higher in patients with early RA compared with participants with no inflammation, and a trend toward higher expression compared with patients with resolving or established RA was shown, according to the researchers.
No association was seen between CXCL4 and CXCL7 and patients with the presence of a positive or negative cyclic citrullinated peptide laboratory result in early or established RA. - by Shirley Pulawski
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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