engleski

Peripheral blood expression profile of bone morphogenetic proteins, tumor-necrosis factor-superfamily molecules and transcription factor Runx2 could be used as marker of the form of arthritis, disease activity and therapeutic responsiveness

We assessed if different forms of arthritis and disease activity could be distinguished by peripheral blood expression profile of bone-regulatory factors including TNF-superfamily (TRAIL, FasL, LIGHT) and BMP-family (BMP-2, BMP-4, BMP-6) members as well as osteoblast differentiation gene Runx2. Blood cells from healthy controls (n=25) and patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA, n=49), osteoarthritis (OA, n=17) or spondyloarthritis, including ankylosing spondylitis (AS, n=27) or psoriatic arthritis (PsA, n=23), were processed for quantitative PCR. Gene expression values were assessed in comparison with control samples, correlated with clinical data of different forms of arthritis and analyzed by ROC curves for discriminating efficiency between arthritic and control samples. BMP-4, BMP-6 and Runx2 expressions were significantly decreased in patients with RA and OA. RA patients also had decreased FasL and LIGHT expression, whereas AS patients had increased Runx2 expression. Negative correlation with disease activity variables was found for BMP-4, FasL and Runx2 in RA and for Runx2 in PsA, whereas positive correlation was found for BMP-4 in PsA. Gene expression was higher in therapy-resistant form of AS and metotrexate-treated patients in RA. ROC curve analysis confirmed discrimination between arthritic and normal samples, particularly decreased LIGHT and Runx2 for RA and increased Runx2 for AS. Our study identified BMPs and Runx2 as possible molecular biomarkers of the intensity of tissue repair in arthritis, whereas lower FasL and LIGHT indicated RA. Correlation between gene expression and disease activity may be clinically useful in assessing therapeutic effectiveness and disease monitoring.

bobe morphpgenetic proteins; tumor-necrosis factors RUNX2; gene expression; blood cells; arthritis

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