Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the therapeutic effect of koumine on collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) in mice. Koumine was extracted from Gelsemium Elegans Benth. The CIA model was established in Balb/c mice. Forty successfully modeled mice were randomly divided into model group and 2, 4 and 8 mg/kg koumine groups, 10 mice in each group. Another 10 normal mice were selected as control group. The 2, 4 and 8 mg/kg koumine groups were treated with 2, 4 and 8 mg/kg koumine, respectively, for three successive weeks. At the end of treatment, compared with model group, in 4 and 8 mg/kg koumine groups the arthritis index was significantly decreased (P < 0.05), the peripheral blood interleukin-17 level and T helper 17 (Th17) cell percentage were significantly decreased (P < 0.05), the peripheral blood interleukin-10 level and regulatory T (Treg) cell percentage were significantly increased (P < 0.05), the spleen tissue RORγt protein expression level was significantly decreased (P < 0.05), and the spleen tissue Foxp3 protein expression level was significantly increased (P < 0.05). In conclusion, koumine has therapeutic effect on CIA in mice. The mechanism may be related to its regulating the RORγt/Foxp3 expressions, thus correcting the Th17/Treg immune imbalance.
Highlights
Rheumatoid arthritis is a kind of multiple-systemic and inflammatory autoimmune disease involving the joints
Practical Application: This study has provided a reference for obtaining koumine from Gelsemium Elegans Benth. and using koumine to treat rheumatoid arthritis
non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and glucocorticoids are mainly used to relieve the joint pain and swelling symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis patients, and reduce the joint damage, but they cannot change the progress of disease (Gøtzsche, 1989; Ten Wolde et al, 1996; Cutolo, 2016)
Summary
Rheumatoid arthritis is a kind of multiple-systemic and inflammatory autoimmune disease involving the joints. NSAIDs, DMARDs and glucocorticoids are mainly used to relieve the joint pain and swelling symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis patients, and reduce the joint damage, but they cannot change the progress of disease (Gøtzsche, 1989; Ten Wolde et al, 1996; Cutolo, 2016). The biological agents mainly exert the therapeutic effect through intervening to the immune mechanism related to rheumatoid arthritis pathogenesis. Their effect is better than that of traditional drugs, but these drugs are expensive, and have the risk of causing tuberculosis, serious infection and tumor (Timlin & Bingham, 2014; Singh et al, 2015; Yun et al, 2016). The new high-efficiency and low-toxicity drugs still need to be developed for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis
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