Previous studies have revealed that ankylosing spondylitis (AS), as the progenitor of axial spondyloarthritis (AxSpA), has been characterized by the insidiously progressive nature of sacroiliitis and spondylitis. Dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) has recently been used to analyse the deposition of monosodium urate (MSU) crystals with higher sensitivity and specificity. However, it remains unclear whether the existence of the MSU crystal deposition detected by DECT at the sacroiliac joint in patients with AxSpA also is associated with the existing structural damage. Here, we performed this study to show the DECT MSU crystal deposits in AxSpA patients without coexisting gout and to ascertain the relationship between the MSU crystal deposition and the structural joint damage of sacroiliac joints. One hundred and eighty-six AxSpA patients without coexisting gout were recruited. The plain radiographs of the sacroiliac joint were obtained, along with the DECT scans at the pelvis and the clinical variables. All statistics based on the left or right sacroiliac joint damage grading (0–4) were calculated independently. Bivariate analysis and ordinal logistic regression was performed between the clinical features and radiographic grades at the sacroiliac joint. At the pelvis, large quantities of MSU crystal deposition were found in patients with AxSpA. The average MSU crystal volume at the left sacroiliac joint, the right sacroiliac joint, and the pelvis were 0.902 ± 1.345, 1.074 ± 1.878, and 5.272 ± 9.044 cm3, values which were correlated with serum uric acid concentrations (r = 0.727, 0.740, 0.896; p < 0.001). In bivariate analysis, wide clinical variables were associated with the changes in sacroiliac joint damage. Further, the AxSpA duration, BASFI score, and the volume of MSU crystal at both sides of sacroiliac joint were associated with the progress of radiographic grade at the sacroiliac joints in the ordinal logistic models (left AOR = 1.180, 3.800, 1.920; right AOR = 1.190, 3.034, 1.418; p < 0.01). Large quantities of MSU crystal deposition detected by DECT were found at the pelvis in AxSpA patients without coexisting gout. In addition to AxSpA duration and BASFI score, the MSU crystal deposition at the sacroiliac joint is associated with the progress of radiographic grade at sacroiliac joints in those patients.

Introduction: The role of natural killer (NK) cells in rheumatoid arthritis remains controversial. We aimed to assess the role of NK cells in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis.Materials and Methods: The percentage of NK cells in the peripheral blood, spleen, lymph nodes and inflamed paws from collagen-induced arthritis mice were examined through the disease progression. Correlation between the proportion of NK cells and subsets with arthritis score, histopathological changes, and bone destruction were evaluated. Adoptive cell transfer was performed to determine the effect of NKp46⁺NK cells on arthritis development, and the role of receptor NKp46 was explored with NKp46 knockout mice.Results: The percentage of NK cells in peripheral blood decreased at the late stage of the disease and negatively correlated with arthritis score. NK cells increased in the inflamed paws during arthritis development and were positively associated with arthritis score, histopathological change, and bone destruction. Adoptive transfer of NKp46⁺NK cells before disease onset resulted in increased NK cells infiltration in the joints, higher incidence of arthritis, more severe clinical symptoms, and more pronounced joint inflammation and bone damage. NKp46 deficiency had no significant influence on the incidence and severity of arthritis in collagen-induced arthritis mice.Conclusions: NK cell infiltration in the joints positively correlates with arthritis progression, inflammation, and bone destruction. The pathogenic role of NK cells in rheumatoid arthritis may be independent of the receptor NKp46.

Full Papers; Authors: X. Liang, J. Wu, H. Ren, M. Li, C. Huang, J.G. Guo, D. Li, J. Li, J. Zhu

Full Papers; Authors: X. Liu, L. Wu, S. Chen, X. Liang, X. Chen, X. Chen, J. Li, J. Zhu

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) encompass a group of diseases. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are common in the matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) genes. The objective of this study was to analyse whether genetic polymorphisms in MMP9-1562 C/T alter the risk of HDP. Studies published up to October 2019 across PubMed, ScienceDirect, SpringerLink, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure database were searched. Case-control or cohort studies involving subtypes of HDP and distribution of genotypes and/or alleles within MMP9-1562 C/T in both patients and controls were selected. Number of genotypes and/or alleles for MMP9-1562 C/T polymorphisms were obtained and analyzed using Stata software. Eight published reports including 1300 HDP patients and 1612 controls were included in the meta-analysis. Results showed that a variant genotype and allele of MMP9-1562 C/T increased the risk of HDP, with pooled OR 1.50 (95% CI 1.16–1.95, P = 0.002) and 1.36 (95% CI 1.15–1.61, P < 0.001). Subgroup analyses showed that the variant genotype and allele of MMP9-1562 C/T also had increased risk of preeclampsia (OR = 1.48, 1.32; 95% CI 1.18–1.86, 1.08–1.62; P = 0.001, 0.007) and gestational hypertension (OR = 2.23, 1.88; 95% CI 1.52–3.28, 1.33–2.65; P < 0.001, < 0.001) in the fixed-effects models. This suggests that variant genotype (TT + TC) and allele (T) of MMP9-1562 C/T are associated with susceptibility of HDP, especially preeclampsia and gestational hypertension.