Leptin facilitates the differentiation of Th17 cells from MRL/Mp-Fas lpr lupus mice by activating NLRP3 inflammasome

Both NLRP3 inflammasome and Th17 cells play important roles in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Here we tried to investigate whether leptin promotes the differentiation of Th17 cells from lupus mice by activating the NLRP3 inflammasome. Th17 cells induced from MRL/Mp-Fas lpr mice splenocytes under Th17 polarizing condition were treated with leptin at scalar doses during the last 18 h of culture. The mRNA levels of IL-17A,...