To investigate the effects of intra-articular injection of sinomenine on interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) content in synovial fluid and serum in rabbits with osteoarthritis (OA).
Degenerative osteoarthritis in the knee joint of left posterior limb was induced in 36 rabbits by full extension using plaster cast for 6 weeks. Then the rabbits were randomly divided into untreated group, hyaluronic acid group and sinomenine group. Another 4 normal rabbits were selected as normal control group. Rabbits in the sinomenine group and the hyaluronic acid group received intraarticular injections of sinomenine and hyaluronic acid once a week for 5 weeks, respectively. The content of IL-1beta in synovial fluid and serum were measured before and after treatment by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The pathological changes of cartilaginous tissue were analyzed by using Mankin's score.
Compared with those in the untreated group, synovial fluid and serum IL-1beta contents in the sinomenine group and the hyaluronic acid group were significantly decreased (P<0.01). And the synovial fluid and serum IL-1beta contents in the sinomenine group were lower than those in the hyaluronic acid group (P<0.05). The mean Mankin's score of cartilage in the sinomenine group was significantly lower than that in hyaluronic acid group (P<0.05).
Sinomenine may reduce the degree of articular degeneration in rabbit with OA through decreasing the content of IL-1beta in synovial fluid and serum.