As. Pac. J. Mol. Biol. & Biotech., Apr 2014 Vol. 2, 180-184
Mini Review : Alpha 1-antitrypsin and its involvement in rheumatoid arthritis
Khushtar A. Salman*, Akif Ahsan and Sarah Ashraf
Department of Biochemistry, J.N Medical College, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh (U.P), India.
* Author for correspondence: Associate Professor Dr. (Mrs) Khushtar A Salman
Department of Biochemistry, J.N Medical College, AMU, Aligarh 202002 (U.P), India.
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Abstract.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a common autoimmune disorder, most often affecting women from 40 to 60 years old. The major symptom is chronic inflammation of the joints, although the hematologic, cardiovascular, and respiratory systems are also frequently affected. Many individuals with rheumatoid arthritis produce a group of auto-antibodies, known as rheumatoid factors, that are reactive with determinants in the Fc region of IgG. Human alpha 1-antitrypsin is well known as a serine proteinase inhibitor which inhibits proteinase 3, neutrophil elastase, and cathepsin G. These serine proteases are released by joint-invading neutrophils following inflammatory stimuli and have been shown to be involved in development of arthritis. A lack of alpha 1-antitrypsin in patients with rheumatoid arthritis could cause an increase in inflammation because of uninhibited lysosomal enzymes. Future studies will focus on improvement of the therapeutic application by optimising the dose and timing of hAAT or rAAV8 vector delivery, and by development of combination therapy with other anti-arthritic drugs.
