RELATIONSHIP OF SOLUBLE INTERLEUKIN-2-RECEPTOR AND INTERLEUKIN-6 WITHCLASS-SPECIFIC RHEUMATOID FACTORS DURING LOW-DOSE METHOTREXATE TREATMENT IN RHEUMATOID-ARTHRITIS
A. Spadaro et al., RELATIONSHIP OF SOLUBLE INTERLEUKIN-2-RECEPTOR AND INTERLEUKIN-6 WITHCLASS-SPECIFIC RHEUMATOID FACTORS DURING LOW-DOSE METHOTREXATE TREATMENT IN RHEUMATOID-ARTHRITIS, Revue du rhumatisme, 64(2), 1997, pp. 89-94
We studied the effect of a 6-month treatment with low-dose MTX in 22 R
A patients, with the purpose of investigating the relationship of sIL-
2R and IL-6 serum chancres with those of class specific RFs. The patie
nts with RA had higher serum levels of sIL-2R (p<0.00001) and IL-6 (p<
0.0005) than healthy volunteers. We found that the levels of IgM-RF (p
<0.0004), IgA-RF (p<0.002), IgG-RF (p<0.025), sIL-2R (p<0.017) and IL-
6 (p<0.044), as well as the main clinical and laboratory variables, we
re significantly reduced in RA patients treated with low dose MTX for
six months. The changes from baseline of IgM-RF correlated with those
of IL-6 (p<0.023), suggesting that MTX may affect IL-6 and IgM-RF prod
uction in part by a common mechanism. In conclusion our results show t
hat there is a relationship between IL-6 and IgM-RF changes from basel
ine during MTX therapy, but the hypothesis of a link between the effec
ts of this drug on cytokine network and RF production needs further in
vestigation.