Effects of testosterone, estrogen and progesterone on TNF-α mediated cellular damage in rat arthritic synovial fibroblasts.

Sexual dimorphism is a well-established phenomenon in rheumatoid arthritis, with women exhibiting higher disease severity. Understanding the role of sex hormones using in vivo animal models is limited due to the systemic effects as well as the difficulty in exploring different dose combinations of the hormones simultaneously. However, cell culture systems pose ideal systems for exploring different combinations and concentrations of the hormones simultaneously.

Low frequency pulsed electromagnetic field--a viable alternative therapy for arthritis.

Arthritis refers to more than 100 disorders of the musculoskeletal system. The existing pharmacological interventions for arthritis offer only symptomatic relief and they are not definitive and curative. Magnetic healing has been known from antiquity and it is evolved to the present times with the advent of electromagnetism.

Estrogen and testosterone attenuate extracellular matrix loss in collagen-induced arthritis in rats.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a sexually dimorphic, autoimmune inflammatory disorder affecting the joints. Joint disability in RA results primarily from loss of matrix components (collagen and glycosoaminoglycan) in the cartilage and synovium. This study was carried out to understand the effect of physiological levels of testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone on oxidative stress-induced changes in matrix composition in rat synovium in arthritis.

Comparative studies on the interplay of testosterone, estrogen and progesterone in collagen induced arthritis in rats.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a sexually dimorphic autoimmune disorder exhibiting a higher disease prevalence and severity among females. This study was carried out to understand the role of the major sex hormones viz., testosterone, estrogen and progesterone on the severity in arthritis.

Myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury in rats: lysosomal hydrolases and matrix metalloproteinases mediated cellular damage.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the time course events of cellular damage during myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury in rats and to find out a correlation between the structural alterations with respect to the biochemical changes. Cardiac biomarkers and lysosomal enzymes viz. cathepsin D, acid phosphatase and beta-glucuronidase and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) were evaluated at different time points, in response to ischemia-reperfusion induced oxidative stress in an isolated rat heart model perfused in Langendorff mode.

Gender differences and protective effects of testosterone in collagen induced arthritis in rats.

To understand the gender differences noticed in autoimmune disorders, particularly rheumatoid arthritis, we used a rat model of collagen induced arthritis (CIA). This study was carried out in two parts. In the first study, severity of inflammation was compared between male and female rats with respect to radiology, histology, activities of lysosomal enzymes, lipid peroxidation, immune response to type II collagen and the level of prostaglandin, a major inflammatory mediator.

Low frequency and low intensity pulsed electromagnetic field exerts its antiinflammatory effect through restoration of plasma membrane calcium ATPase activity.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disorder affecting 1% of the population worldwide. Pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) has a number of well-documented physiological effects on cells and tissues including antiinflammatory effect. This study aims to explore the antiinflammatory effect of PEMF and its possible mechanism of action in amelioration of adjuvant induced arthritis (AIA).