Pharmacological inhibition of RORγt suppresses the Th17 pathway and alleviates arthritis in vivo.

Retinoic acid receptor-related-orphan-receptor-C (RORγt) is the key transcription factor that is driving the differentiation of IL-17 producing T-helper 17 (Th17) cells that are implicated in the pathology of various autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Based on the importance of RORγt in promoting Th17-driven pathology, there is considerable interest to develop low-molecular-weight compounds with the aim of inhibiting the transcriptional activity of this nuclear hormone receptor. In this article, we describe the in vitro and in vivo pharmacology of a potent and selective small-molecular-weight RORγt inverse agonist.