NLRP3 expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic autoimmune disease mainly characterized by painful, swollen, and inflamed joints. Individual, genetic, and environmental factors influence the development of the disease, which causes involvement not only in the joints but also in other extra-articular tissues. However, its etiopathogenesis has not been fully elucidated yet. NLRP3, which is a key component of innate immune system, may contribute to recurrent and chronic inflammation, resulting in inflammation-related diseases. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the expression profile of NLRP3 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells isolated from patients with RA using immunocytochemical approaches in this study. Our findings demonstrated that NLRP3 expression was significantly increased in patients with RA in comparison with the healthy controls (p