Prolactin increases tumor necrosis factor alpha expression in peripheral CD14 monocytes of patients with rheumatoid arthritis

•CD14+ cells express prolactin receptor.•Prolactin receptors are increased in rheumatoid arthritis patients.•Activating the prolactin receptor induces release of TNF-α from CD14+ cells.

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α is one of the major proinflammatory mediators of rheumatic arthritis (RA); the regulatory factors for TNF-α release is not fully understood. This study aims to investigate the role of prolactin receptor (PRLR) activation in regulating the expression and release of TNF-α from CD14+ monocytes. The results showed that the expression of PRLR was detectable in CD14+ monocytes of healthy subjects, which was markedly increased in RA patients. Exposure to PRL in the culture increased the expression and release of TNF-α from CD14+ monocytes, which was abolished by the PRLR gene silencing or blocking the mitogen activated protein (MAPK) pathway. We conclude that exposure to PRL increases TNF-α release from CD14+ monocytes of RA patients, which can be abolished by PRLR gene silencing or treating with MAPK inhibitor.