title: Interleukin-27 as a potential therapeutic target for rheumatoid arthritis: has the time come?
abstract: Interleukin (IL)-27 is a novel member of the IL-6/IL-12 family of cytokines with a broad range of pro- and anti-inflammatory properties. Recently, accumulating evidence has shown that IL-27 can play either a pathogenic or a protective role in animal models of inflammatory arthritis, depending upon the model and underlying pathogenic mechanisms. As to human system, elevated expression of IL-27 has clearly been detected in the synovial membranes and fluid from patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Moreover, stimulation of IL-27 receptor with IL-27 of fibroblast-like synoviocytes from RA had a suppressive effect on the production of proinflammatory cytokines in vitro. All these findings suggest that IL-27 may have promise as a potential therapeutic target for RA. In this review, we will discuss the biological features of IL-27 and summarize recent advances on both pathogenic and protective roles of IL-27 in RA.
authors.affiliation: The Third Hospital Affiliated to Nantong University, Wuxi, Jiangsu, 214041, China, gongfang2004@aliyun.com.
authors.forename: Fang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.forename: Yu-Hong
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: Xuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Jiang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Jin-Hua
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.forename: Hua-Yan
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Zhu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000628:therapy*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation; D064094:Interleukin-27 / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D018123:Receptors, Interleukin / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013582:Synovial Fluid / Q000166:cytology; D013583:Synovial Membrane / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; C112441:IL27RA protein, human; D064094:Interleukin-27; D018123:Receptors, Interleukin