The role of IL-6 in bone marrow (BM)-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) proliferation and chondrogenesis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is the most common degenerative arthritic cartilage and represents a disease where the prospect of stem cell therapy offers considerable hope. Currently, bone marrow (BM) represents the major source of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for cell therapy. In the pathology of RA, the pro- inflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin 6 (IL-6) play a pivotal role. To investigate the direct role of IL-6 in the chondrogenic differentiation of murine MSCs (mMSCs), we isolate MSCs from the murine bone marrow, and induce MSCs chondrogenesis with differ- ent concentrations of IL-6 in vitro. Through detecting the histological and histochemical qualities of the aggregates, we demonstrate that IL-6 inhibited the differentiation of MSCs into chondrocytes in the dose- dependence manner. These findings suggest that possi- ble strategies for improving the clinical outcome of cartilage repair procedures.