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Galanin in Adjuvant Arthritis in the Rat
WU QINYANG, KJELL HULTENBY, ELHASSAN ADLAN, and J. URBAN LINDGREN
ABSTRACT.
Methods. Adjuvant arthritis was induced by intradermal injection of Mycobacterium butyricum in Freund's incomplete adjuvant at the base of the tail. The concentrations of galanin were measured by radioimmunoassay (RIA) and the distributions of galanin were detected by immunoelectron microscopy (iEM). Results. Measurements were taken on Day 28 after injection. RIA results showed that the concentration of galanin was significantly lower in the ankles and spinal cords of rats with adjuvant arthritis compared to controls. Our iEM results showed a heterogeneous distribution of galanin labelling in different cells and tissue compartments. In arthritic rats, we observed decreased galanin labelling in the sciatic nerve and in macrophage-like cells in the synovial membrane and increased labelling in monocyte lineage cells, polymorphonucleated lineage cells in the bone marrow, fibroblasts in the periosteum, osteoclasts and osteocytes, and lower labelling in osteoblasts compared to controls. Conclusion. Galanin is involved in the response to inflammation in adjuvant arthritis and might play a role in the regulation of inflammation and nociception. These findings are in accordance with a biological role of galanin in the development of inflammatory arthritis. (J Rheumatol 2004; 31:302-7) Key Indexing Terms:
GALANIN
From the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and the Clinical Research Centre, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden. Supported by grants from the Karolinska Institute, the Swedish Research Council, Centrum för idrosttsforskning, and Ulla och Gustaf af Ugglas stiftelse. W. Qinyang, MD, PhD Student; K. Hultenby, PhD, Associate Professor; E. Adlan, MD, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow; J. Urban Lindgren, MD, PhD, Professor. Address reprint requests to Dr. W. Qinyang, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Huddinge University Hospital, SE-141 86 Stockholm, Sweden. E-mail: qinyang.wu@cfss.ki.se Submitted January 31, 2003; revision accepted July 15, 2003. |