Arthritis research & therapy
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Arthritis Res. Ther. · Jan 2010
Editorial CommentTranscriptional profiling of the nucleus pulposus: say yes to notochord.
This editorial addresses the debate concerning the origin of adult nucleus pulposus cells in the light of profiling studies by Minogue and colleagues. In their report of several marker genes that distinguish nucleus pulposus cells from other related cell types, the authors provide novel insights into the notochordal nature of the former. Together with recently published work, their work lends support to the view that all cells present within the nucleus pulposus are derived from the notochord. Hence, the choice of an animal model for disc research should be based on considerations other than the cell loss and replacement by non-notochordal cells.
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Arthritis Res. Ther. · Jan 2010
Randomized Controlled TrialA phase 2 randomized, double-blind study of AMG 108, a fully human monoclonal antibody to IL-1R, in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Preclinical work has suggested that IL-1 plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The objective of the present study was to determine the effect of a long-acting IL-1 receptor inhibitor, AMG 108, in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-dosing study in patients with active RA who were receiving stable methotrexate (15 to 25 mg/week). ⋯ This large double-blind randomized trial with a long-acting IL-1 receptor blocker, AMG 108, is consistent with the experience of other IL-1 blockers, represents a definitive experiment showing that IL-1 inhibition provides only moderate symptomatic amelioration of arthritis activity in the majority of RA patients, and provides an answer to a question that has been discussed for many years in the rheumatologic community.
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Arthritis Res. Ther. · Jan 2010
Randomized Controlled TrialDoes moderate-to-high intensity Nordic walking improve functional capacity and pain in fibromyalgia? A prospective randomized controlled trial.
The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of moderate-to-high intensity Nordic walking (NW) on functional capacity and pain in fibromyalgia (FM). ⋯ Moderate-to-high intensity aerobic exercise by means of Nordic walking twice a week for 15 weeks was found to be a feasible mode of exercise, resulting in improved functional capacity and a decreased level of activity limitations. Pain severity did not change over time during the exercise period.
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Arthritis Res. Ther. · Jan 2010
Influence of depression symptoms on serum tumor necrosis factor-α of patients with chronic low back pain.
Patients with chronic low back pain (cLBP) have high rates of comorbid psychiatric disorders, mainly depression. Recent evidence suggests that depressive symptoms and pain, as interacting factors, have an effect on the circulating levels of inflammatory markers relevant to coronary artery disease. Our previous work showed a higher serum level of an inflammatory marker tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) in patients with cLBP, which did not correlate with intensity of low back pain alone. In the present study we investigated the cross-sectional associations of depressive symptoms, low back pain and their interaction with circulating levels of TNFα. ⋯ Depression as a comorbidity to cLBP did not influence the serum TNFα level. It seems that TNFα somehow acts as a mediator in both cLBP and depression, involving similar mechanisms that will be interesting to follow in further studies.
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Arthritis Res. Ther. · Jan 2010
Mitochondrial dysfunction and mitophagy activation in blood mononuclear cells of fibromyalgia patients: implications in the pathogenesis of the disease.
Fibromyalgia is a chronic pain syndrome with unknown etiology. Recent studies have shown some evidence demonstrating that oxidative stress may have a role in the pathophysiology of fibromyalgia. However, it is still not clear whether oxidative stress is the cause or the effect of the abnormalities documented in fibromyalgia. Furthermore, the role of mitochondria in the redox imbalance reported in fibromyalgia also is controversial. We undertook this study to investigate the role of mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and mitophagy in fibromyalgia. ⋯ These findings may support the role of oxidative stress and mitophagy in the pathophysiology of fibromyalgia.