Abstract
Huo-luo-xiao-ling dan (HLXL) is an herbal mixture that has long been used in traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other inflammatory disorders. Despite the availability of potent conventionally used drugs for RA, their limited efficacy in a proportion of patients coupled with their high cost and severe adverse effects has necessitated the search for novel therapeutics for this debilitating disease. Further, the control of both inflammation and bone damage is essential for effective management of arthritis. The aim of our study was to evaluate the efficacy of HLXL against arthritic bone damage in adjuvant arthritis (AA) model of RA. Our results show that HLXL treatment suppressed inflammatory arthritis and reduced bone and cartilage damage in the joints of arthritic Lewis rats. HLXL-induced protection against bone damage was mediated primarily via inhibition of mediators of osteoclastic bone remodeling (e.g., receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B ligand; RANKL), skewing of RANKL/osteoprotegerin (OPG) ratio in favor of antiosteoclastic activity, reduction in the number of osteoclasts in the arthrodial joint's bone, and inhibition of cytokine production and MMP activity. Our results suggest that HLXL might offer a promising alternative/adjunct treatment for both inflammation and bone damage in RA.
Highlights
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a global autoimmune disease, affecting about 1 percent of the population in USA and Europe, for example [1]
On d 18, the hind paws of rats were subjected to radiological examination; the radiographs showed reduction in the inflamed soft tissue around the joints and bone damage in Huo-luo-xiao-ling dan (HLXL)-treated rats compared to control rats (Figures 1(a)– 1(d))
Our results show that treatment of arthritic Lewis rats with HLXL significantly reduced inflammation of hind paws as assessed by arthritic scores
Summary
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a global autoimmune disease, affecting about 1 percent of the population in USA and Europe, for example [1]. A variety of potent antiarthritic drugs, including biologics, have been used for the treatment of RA over the past decade or so [1, 3]. Their efficacy may be limited to a subset of patients, and their use may be associated with severe adverse reactions [3, 4] Natural plant products belonging to the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) represent a diverse collection of potential therapeutic agents for a wide variety of diseases including RA [5,6,7]. The present study is aimed at fulfilling these important objectives for a TCM herbal mixture for the treatment of arthritis
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