TY - JOUR T1 - Possible Implication of Red Blood Cells in the Prothrombotic Risk in Early Rheumatoid Arthritis JF - The Journal of Rheumatology JO - J Rheumatol SP - 1352 LP - 1354 DO - 10.3899/jrheum.141396 VL - 42 IS - 7 AU - MANUELA DI FRANCO AU - LUCREZIA GAMBARDELLA AU - ANNA CHIARA DI LOLLO AU - WALTER MALORNI AU - GUIDO VALESINI AU - ELISABETTA STRAFACE Y1 - 2015/07/01 UR - http://www.jrheum.org/content/42/7/1352.abstract N2 - To the Editor:Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune inflammatory disease that can be considered as a prothrombotic state1. A great number of studies have investigated the possible role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the etiology and pathogenesis of this disease. The presence of large amounts of superoxide radicals and hydrogen peroxide produced by activated neutrophils has been reported in the synovial fluid of patients with RA. This may cause lipid peroxidation that yields a wide variety of end products, including malondialdehyde (MDA), a known marker of oxidative stress. These products are therefore transported from the synovial fluid to the blood circulation system2. Considering that elevated levels of MDA have been observed in the blood plasma of patients with RA2, the aim of this pilot study was to investigate whether the elevated levels of plasmatic MDA could be associated with a modification of the total antioxidant capacity (TAC) of blood plasma that is usually indicative of a “systemic” oxidative imbalance3. In addition, in view of their activity as redox effectors or scavengers4, as well as determinants of thrombus formation … Address correspondence to Dr. E. Straface, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Department of Therapeutic Research and Medicine Evaluation, Section of Cell Aging and Gender Medicine, Viale Regina Elena 299 - 00161 Rome, Italy. E-mail: elisabetta.straface{at}iss.it ER -