Rosiglitazone-mediated dendritic cells ameliorate collagen-induced arthritis in mice

Rosiglitazone is a selective ligand for peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-γ), which serves diverse biological functions. A number of autoimmune disease models have been used to examine the anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive effects of tolerogenic dendritic cells (tDCs). The aim of the present study was to investigate whether rosiglitazone-mediated DC (Rosi-DC) therapy suppressed arthritis in a collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) mouse model. Rosi-DCs were generated by treating immature DCs with TNF-α, type II collagen, and rosiglitazone. CIA mice then received subcutaneously (s.c.) two injections of Rosi-DCs. The severity of arthritis was then assessed histopathologically. The phenotypes of the DC and regulatory T (Treg) cell populations in CIA mice were determined by flow cytometry and the effect of Rosi-DCs on the secretion of autoimmunity-inducing cytokines was examined by ELISA. Rosi-DCs expressed lower levels of DC-related surface markers than mature DCs. Histopathological examination revealed that the degree of inflammation in the paws of Rosi-DC-treated mice was much lower than that in the paws of PBS-treated CIA mice. Taken together, these results clearly show that rosiglitazone-mediated DCs ameliorate CIA, most likely via the induction of antigen-specific Treg cells.