Excessive production of interleukin 6/B cell stimulatory factor‐2 in rheumatoid arthritis

作者：Toshio Hirano, Tadashi Matsuda, Martin Turner, Nobuyuki Miyasaka, G.S. Buchan, Bo Tang, Kazuto Sato, Masatoshi Shimi, Ravinder Maid, Marc Feldmann, Tadamitsu Kishimoto · 发表于：European Journal of Immunology · 年份：1988 · DOI：10.1002/eji.1830181122 · 被引用次数：794 · 研究领域：Rheumatoid Arthritis Research and Therapies、Toxin Mechanisms and Immunotoxins、T-cell and B-cell Immunology

High levels of interleukin 6 (IL 6/B cell stimulatory factor-2) were detected in synovial fluids from the joints of patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The cells found in freshly isolated synovial fluid constitutively expressed IL 6 mRNA. The synovial tissues obtained by joint biopsy were also found to produce IL 6 in vitro. Immunohistochemical analysis demonstrated that CD2+ T cells as well as CD20+ blastoid B cells in the synovial tissues produce IL 6. The data indicate that IL 6 is generated constitutively in RA and its overproduction may explain the local as well as the generalized symptoms of RA, since IL 6 can function as B cell growth and differentiation factor as well as hepatocyte-stimulating factor.