Abstract: Objective To explore the effects of carboxyamidotriazole (CAI) on cytokines production by peritoneal macrophages from adjuvant arthritis (AA) rats in vitro. Methods Freund’s completed adjuvant was used to induce AA in rats. Peritoneal macrophages were prepared from asepsis and incubated with CAI (10, 20, 40 μmol/L) in vitro. The contents of TNF-α、IL-1β and IL-6 in the culture supernatant were measured by ELISA, and mRNA expressions of TNF-α、IL-1β and IL-6 were determined by Real-time Quantitative PCR. NF-κB p65 DNA binding activity in the nuclear protein was detected with TransAM kit. Results The levels of TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 in the culture supernatant, their intracellular mRNA expressions and NF-κB p65 DNA-binding activity in the peritoneal macrophages of AA rats were significantly inhibited by CAI (20 and 40 μmol/L) (P＜0.05 and P＜0.01). Conclusions CAI could decrease the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 through inhibiting the activation of NF-κB, which might be associated with its anti-arthritic mechanisms.

Key words: carboxyamidotriazole, adjuvant arthritis, macrophage, cytokine, nuclear factor-κB