The role of aberrant expression of T cell miRNAs affected by TNF-α in the immunopathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis

Background Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) can cause diverse T cell dysfunctions in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It is involved in the regulation of microRNAs (miRNAs) expression in different cell types. We hypothesized that the expression of T cell miRNAs would be affected by TNF-α, and these miRNAs could participate in the immunopathogenesis of RA.