Figure 1.

Local delivery of Ad-mIL-4. Three days after lipopolysaccharide treatment collagen-immunized mice were injected periarticularly with 5×10⁸ particles of Ad-mIL-4, Ad-eGFP, or saline. (a) Arthritis index. Subsequently, severity of disease was assessed every other day using an established macroscopic scoring system ranging from 0 to 4: 0, normal; 1, detectable arthritis with erythma; 2, significant swelling and redness; 3, severe swelling and redness from joint to digit; and 4, maximal swelling with ankylosis or necrosis. The average macroscopic score was expressed as a cumulative value for all paws, with a maximum possible score of 16 per mouse (n = 20). ^*P <0.01. (b) Paw swelling. The thickness of each paw was also evaluated using a spring-load caliper. The paw swelling for each mouse was calculated by adding the four thicknesses of the individual paws. ^*P <0.1;^**P <0.05. (c) Number of arthritic paws. At the same time, the total number of arthritic paws were determined for each experimental group (n = 10, maximum 40 per group). ^*P <0.01.