Figure 3.

Effects of LE and rLE on the serum TNF-α and IL-1β levels, and pro-inflammatory immune response of spleen cell in CIA mice. CIA mice with the clinical signs of arthritis were orally administered the vehicle (PBS containing 1% DMSO), LE (10 mg/kg) or rLE (10 mg/kg) once daily from day 25 to day 45. Control mice were neither immunized with CII nor treated with extracts. (a) The serum levels of TNF-α and IL-1β were measured by ELISA assay. (b) Single-cell suspensions from spleens were obtained from control and all CIA mice. The proliferation of spleen cells stimulated with 50 μg/ml denatured CII for 72 hours was assessed using a BrdU cell proliferation ELISA kit (left), and TNF-α and IL-1β levels were measured in conditioned media of spleen cells stimulated with 50 μg/ml denatured CII or 5 μg/ml LPS for 48 hours, using each specific ELISA kit (middle and right). Data is expressed as mean ± SE of 5 mice per group. ^#P < .01 versus control mice, *P < .01 versus vehicle-treated CIA mice.