Collagen-induced arthritis is exacerbated in C-reactive protein-deficient mice.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Blood C-reactive protein (CRP) is routinely measured to gauge inflammation. In rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a heightened CRP level is predictive of a poor outcome, while a lowered CRP level is indicative of a positive response to therapy. CRP interacts with the innate and adaptive immune systems in ways that suggest it may be causal in RA and, although this is not proven, it is widely assumed that CRP makes a detrimental contribution to the disease process. Paradoxically, results from animal studies have indicated that CRP might be beneficial in RA. This study was undertaken to study the role of CRP in a mouse model of RA, the collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) model.

Methods

We compared the impact of CRP deficiency with that of transgenic overexpression of CRP on infl

SUBMITTER: Jones NR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3168703 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature