OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of prophylactic administration of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) in relieving inflammation in a rat model of collagen-induced arthritis (CIA).

METHODSFemale Wistar rats (6 to 8 weeks old) were randomly divided into normal control group, solvent control group, and prophylactic ATRA treatment (0.05, 0.5, and 5 mg/kg) groups. All the rats except for those in normal control group were subjected to subcutaneous injection of type II collagen and incomplete Freund adjuvant in the tails to induce CIA, followed by injection on the following day with saline, corn oil or different doses of ATRA 3 times a week. The arthritis index (AI) scores, histological scores, serum levels of TNF-α, IL-17A, and IL-10, and expressions of proteases related with cartilage damage were evaluated.

RESULTSOn the 15th day after the primary immunization, the AI scores increased significantly in all but the normal control groups; the scores increased progressively in all the 3 ATRA groups but remained lower than that in the solvent control group, which was stable over time. The rats in the 3 ATRA groups showed obvious pathologies in the knee and ankle joints, but the semi-quantitative scores of pathology damage showed no significance among them. Compared with those in solvent control group, the serum IL-17A and TNF-α levels decreased, serum IL-10 level increased, and the expressions of ADAMT-4 and MMP-3 proteins decreased significantly in the knees in the 3 ATRA groups.

CONCLUSIONATRA can reduce the production of TNF-α and IL-17A and increase the production of IL-10 to alleviate the inflammation in rats with CIA. ATRA may delay the progression of RA by correcting the imbalance of Th1/Th2 and Th17/Treg.