Abstract:

BACKGROUND: It has been proved that rheumatoid can be cured by artesunate. But the specific mechanism remains poorly understood. 
OBJECTIVE: To explore the effects of artesunate on the level of interleukin-17 and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in rabbit with adjuvant arthritis.
METHODS: The rabbits were prepared for adjuvant arthritis models. From the first day after model preparation, rabbits in the artesunate group were drenched with artesunate (20 mg/kg per day) for 7 days. Hydroxychlorquine group were infused with hydroxychlorquine (5 mg/kg per day) for 7 days. Model control group was infused with normal saline (3 mL/kg per day) for 7 days. Additional 10 normal rabbits served as controls. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect synovial fluid and serum level of IL-17 and TNF-α at the end of model preparation and 5 weeks after medication.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Compared with model rats, the serum and synovial fluid levels of IL-17 and TNF-α in the artesunate group and hydroxychlorquine group were obviously decreased (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01), especially in the Artesunate group, which was greater than that of the hydroxychlorquine group (P < 0.05). The results revealed that artesunate can down-regulate the serum and synovial fluid level of IL-17 and TNF-α of adjuvant arthritis. Artesunate has better effect than hydroxychlorquine on treatment of inflammation.