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Interleukin-21 Receptor Deficiency Increases the Initial Toll-like Receptor 2 Response but Protects Against Joint Pathology by Reducing Th1 and Th17 Cells During Streptococcal Cell Wall Arthritis

This paper is available in a repository.
This paper is available in a repository.

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Abstract

Objective. The cytokine interleukin-21 (IL-21) can have both proinflammatory and immunosuppressive effects. The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential dual role of IL-21 in experimental arthritis in relation to Th17 cells. Methods. Antigen-induced arthritis (AIA) and chronic streptococcal cell wall (SCW) arthritis were induced in IL-21 receptor-deficient (IL-21R(-/-)) and wild-type mice. Knee joints, synovial tissue, and serum were analyzed for arthritis pathology and inflammatory markers. Results. During AIA and chronic SCW arthritis, IL-21R deficiency protected against severe inflammation and joint destruction. This was accompanied by suppressed serum IgG1 levels and antigen-specific T cell responses. Levels of IL-17 were reduced during AIA, and synovial lymphocytes isolated during SCW arthritis for flow cytometry demonstrated that mainly IL-17+ interferon-gamma (IFN gamma)-positive T cells were reduced in IL-21R(-/-) mice. However, during the acute phases of SCW arthritis, significantly higher joint swelling scores were observed, consistent with enhanced tumor necrosis factor and IL-6 expression. Interestingly, IL-21R(-/-) mice were significantly less capable of up-regulating suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS-1) and SOCS-3 messenger RNA. IL-21 stimulation also affected the Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR-2)/caspase recruitment domain 15 response to SCW fragments in vitro, indicating that impaired SOCS regulation in the absence of IL-21 signaling might contribute to the increased local activation during SCW arthritis. Conclusion. In contrast to the proinflammatory role of IL-21 in adaptive immunity, which drives IL-17 + IFN + cells and joint pathology during chronic experimental arthritis, IL-21 also has an important immunosuppressive role, presumably by inhibiting TLR signaling via SOCS-1 and SOCS-3. If this dual role of IL-21 in various immune processes is present in human disease, it could make IL-21 a difficult therapeutic target in rheumatoid arthritis.