A 588-gene microarray analysis of the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of spondyloarthropathy patients

OBJECTIVES: To identify genes which are more highly expressed in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of patients with spondyloarthropathy (SpA), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA), in comparison to normal subjects. METHODS: A 588-gene microarray was used as a screening tool to select a panel of such genes from PBMC of these subjects and of normal subjects. Results were then validated by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). RESULTS: The following genes were more highly expressed in arthritis patients than in normal subjects: macrophage differentiation marker MNDA (myeloid nuclear differentiation antigen), MRP8 and MRP14 (migratory inhibitor…

Third Eular Workshop on Rheumatology Research

Expression of host defense scavenger receptors in spondylarthropathy

Objective Reactive arthritis (ReA) is postulated to be caused by a defective host defense against gram-negative bacteria. HLA–B27 could play a role in this process, but does not account for the many HLA–B27 negative patients. The objective of this study was to test the expression of 3 macrophage scavenger receptors (SRs) that are responsible for innate immunity against gram-negative bacteria: SR class A type I (SR-AI), SR-AII, and the macrophage receptor with collagenous structure (MARCO). We postulate that defects in such receptors might also contribute to the host risk factors that increase the predisposition to ReA and perhaps other subtypes of spondylarthropathy (SpA). Methods Periphera…

The cutting edge of spondylarthropathy research in the millennium

In the last few years, with advances in technology and concept, research on the spondylarthropathies (SpA) has moved from random harvesting of piecemeal data to systematic evaluations of core puzzles. In the Second International Congress of Spondylarthropathies, held in Ghent, Belgium, on October 4–7, 2000, the most recent data were presented and these core puzzles were defined. The factors that are unique to SpA are 1) the site of inflammation is not only the synovium, but also the enthesis; 2) the essential predisposing gene is HLA– B27; 3) a number of other genes are required for development of ankylosing spondylitis (AS), a prototype of SpA; and 4) certain facultative intracellular Gram…