Background
In the murine macrophage-mediated SCW-induced arthritis, IL-1 plays a dominant role in cartilage destruction, as was shown in previous studies using cytokine gene knockout mice or antibodies against IL-1. T cell IL-17 is a proinflammatory cytokine that has many IL-1-like activities. IL-17 is expressed in the synovium of RA patients and may play a role in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) pathology.