Mimicking disruption of brain-immune system-joint communication results in collagen type II-induced arthritis in non-susceptible PVG rats.

The brain-immune system-joint communication is disrupted during collagen type II (CII) arthritis in DA rats. Since PVG rats are not susceptible to arthritis induction, comparison of hypothalamic and peripheral neuro-endocrine and immune responses between immunized DA and PVG rats might help to explain their different susceptibility to develop the disease. PVG and DA rats were immunized with CII.

Differential effect of severe and moderate social stress on blood immune and endocrine measures and susceptibility to collagen type II arthritis in male rats.

The effects of social stress on several blood immune measures and collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) were investigated in Wistar rats using the resident-intruder confrontation paradigm to induce stress of different intensity. Male intruders were exposed for one week to a dominant opponent either repeatedly for 4h daily (moderate stress) or continuously (severe stress). Arthritis was induced by intradermal injection of collagen type II (CII) into the tail skin at the end of day 3 of confrontation.

Disrupted brain-immune system-joint communication during experimental arthritis.

Objective: To explore the hypothesis that, in parallel with alterations in the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis and the sympathetic nervous system, hypothalamic cytokine expression and monoaminergic neurotransmitter concentrations are affected during the course of arthritis development induced by type II collagen. This hypothesis was based on evidence that acute inflammatory processes induce cytokine expression in the brain and affect neuronal activity. We also studied whether depletion of hypothalamic noradrenaline can affect peripheral joint disease.