ABSTRACT
Objective: To investigate the anti-inflammatory, especially the inhibitory effects of TZT-5, an active component from the leaves of Triterygium wilfordii, on the rheumatoid arthritis of rats and to explore its pharmacodynamic effect using an arthritic model of rats. Methods: The ear swelling model induced by croton oil in mice, paw edema model induced by carrageenin in rats, chicken collagen II (CCII)-induced arthritic model, and adjuvant-induced arthritic (AIA) model in rats were established, respectively. The in vivo anti-inflammatory and inhibitory effects of TZT-5 on the rheumatoid arthritis of rats were observed. Results: TZT-5 could alleviate the symptoms of the above four inflammation animal models, ameliorate the infiltration of inflammatory cells in synovium, and inhibit the proliferation of synovial cells in both CCII-induced arthritic models and AIA models of rats. Conclusion: TZT-5 has the ideal anti-inflammatory effects on CCII-induced arthritic model and AIA model of rats and it is a candidate as a new anti-rheumatoid arthritis drug.