Endocrine Abstracts

Within the synovium of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), synovial fibroblasts generate active corticosteroids through expression of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β-HSD1). In vitro, this enzyme is strongly up-regulated by pro-inflammatory cytokines such as tumour necrosis factor α (TNFα) and IL1β. In this study, we determined the relationship between inflammation and global 11β-HSD1 activity in vivo, in a clini...