Cytokines in rheumatoid arthritis / 한양의대학술지

ABSTRACT

Rheumatoid arthritis is a common, chronic inflammatory arthritis that affects mainly the small diarthrodial joints of hands and feet. Although the cause of this disease remains unknown, the extensive researches to the pathophysiology of rheumatoid arthritis have resulted dramatic evolution in understanding its pathogenesis over the past a few years. Especially, the increasing knowledge about the role of cytokines in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis has led to a new strategy to treat this disease. In this review, we discuss the current knowledge about the expression of proand anti-inflammatory cytokines and their roles in rheumatoid arthritis.