Traditional Chinese Medicine Department of Rheumatism, Huazhong University of Science and Techology Union Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen Nanshan People's Hospital, Shenzhen 518060, Guangdong, China.
Curr Pharm Biotechnol. 2020;21(8):734-740. doi: 10.2174/1389201021666191210110826.
Melittin, the major medicinal component of honeybee venom, exerts antiinflammatory, analgesic, and anti-arthritic effects in patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). RA is an inflammatory autoimmune joint disease that leads to irreversible joint destruction and functional loss. Fibroblast-Like Synoviocytes (FLS) are dominant, special mesenchymal cells characterized by the structure of the synovial intima, playing a crucial role in both the initiation and progression of RA.
In this study, we evaluated the effects of melittin on the viability and apoptosis of FLS isolated from patients with RA.
Cell viability was determined using CCK-8 assays; apoptosis was evaluated by flow cytometry, and the expression levels of apoptosis-related proteins (caspase-3, caspase-9, BAX, and Bcl-2) were also determined. To explore whether melittin alters inflammatory processes in RA-FLS, IL-1β levels were determined using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Furthermore, we performed GFP-LC3 punctate fluorescence dot assays and western blotting (for LC3, ATG5, p62, and Beclin 1) to assess autophagy in RA-FLS.
Our results show that melittin can significantly impair viability, promote apoptosis and autophagy, and inhibit IL-1β secretion in RA-FLS.
Melittin may be useful in preventing damage to the joints during accidental local stimulation.
蜂毒中的主要药用成分蜂肽在类风湿关节炎（RA）患者中具有抗炎、镇痛和抗关节炎作用。RA 是一种炎症性自身免疫性关节疾病，可导致不可逆转的关节破坏和功能丧失。成纤维样滑膜细胞（FLS）是一种特殊的间充质细胞，以滑膜内膜的结构为特征，在 RA 的起始和进展中起着至关重要的作用。
本研究评估了蜂肽对 RA 患者分离的 FLS 活力和凋亡的影响。
用 CCK-8 法测定细胞活力；通过流式细胞术评估细胞凋亡，测定凋亡相关蛋白（caspase-3、caspase-9、BAX 和 Bcl-2）的表达水平。为了探讨蜂肽是否改变 RA-FLS 中的炎症过程，用酶联免疫吸附试验（ELISA）测定 IL-1β 水平。此外，我们还进行了 GFP-LC3 点状荧光斑点测定和 Western blot（用于 LC3、ATG5、p62 和 Beclin 1），以评估 RA-FLS 中的自噬。
我们的结果表明，蜂肽可显著损害 RA-FLS 的活力，促进其凋亡和自噬，并抑制 IL-1β 的分泌。
蜂肽可用于预防意外局部刺激引起的关节损伤。
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