Abstract
Background: The histone deacetylase (HDAC) family consists of epigenetic modifiers that demonstrate anti-inflammatory activities, and hence they might have a substantial role in auto-inflammatory disorders including rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the expression of HDAC1, HDAC2, and HDAC11 genes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of RA cases compared to healthy controls.
Methods: In the current study, PBMCs were isolated after blood collection from 48 RA patients and 50 healthy controls. Afterward, RNA extraction and cDNA synthesis was performed. The expression of target genes was investigated utilizing the real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with a relative quantification method.
Results: Overexpression of HDAC1 (Fold change= 1.91, P-value <0.001), HDAC2 (Fold change= 1.47, P-value=0.002), and HDAC11 (Fold change= 7.77, P-value <0.001) were observed in PBMCs of RA individuals in comparison to healthy subjects. Besides, a strong correlation was found between the expressions of these three genes in PBMCs.
Conclusion: Regarding the histones and non-histone proteins that are targeted by HDACs and are involved in inflammatory responses, the significant increase in the expression of HDAC1, HDAC2, and HDAC11 suggests that these genes may have an important role in RA pathogenesis.
Keywords
HDAC1, HDAC2, HDAC11, Gene expression, Immunogenetic, Rheumatoid arthritis