Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) plays an important role in the development of inflammation. In this study, we evaluated the role of MIF in gastric injury induced by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in mice. To induce gastric injury, mice were intraperitnoneally injected with 35 mg/kg of indomethacin. The level of MIF protein was up-regulated and severe gastric injury with inflammatory infiltrate was observed in the stomach of wild-type (WT) mice treated with indomethacin. The severity of gastric injury in MIF-deficient mice was less than that in WT mice. Increase in TNF-α in gastric tissue of mice treated with indomethacin was suppressed in MIF-deficient mice. The expression of HSP70, which has a cytoprotective role, was remarkably up-regulated in the stomach of MIF-deficient mice compared with WT mice after indomethacin treatment. Our results suggest that MIF is essential for the development of gastric injury-induced by NSAIDs.
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