title: Functional alpha 1-adrenergic receptors on leukocytes of patients with polyarticular juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.
abstract: During the last decade it has been shown that the central nervous system can influence the immune system. In healthy individuals, catecholamines can inhibit the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines like interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) via interaction with beta 2-adrenergic receptors. In contrast, we show here that catecholamines can stimulate the production of the interleukin-6 (IL-6) in children with the chronic inflammatory disease polyarticular juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA). The induction of IL-6 is mediated by triggering of alpha 1-adrenergic receptors on peripheral blood leucocytes of the patients with polyarticular JRA. Functional alpha 1-adrenergic receptors are absent on leukocytes of normal donors and on leukocytes of patients with the oligoarticular form of the disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunology, University Hospital for Children and Youth Het Wilhelmina Kinderziekenhuis, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Heijnen
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rouppe van der Voort
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wulffraat
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: van der Net
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kuis
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kavelaars
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001171:Arthritis, Juvenile / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017292:Doxazosin / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D007963:Leukocytes, Mononuclear / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D010656:Phenylephrine / Q000494:pharmacology; D018340:Receptors, Adrenergic, alpha-1 / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D015850:Interleukin-6; D018340:Receptors, Adrenergic, alpha-1; D010656:Phenylephrine; D017292:Doxazosin