BAX and rheumatoid arthritis: As shown in Table 3, serum levels of NF-κB, HIF-1α, MMP-3 and VEGF were significantly higher by 4.34-, 6.37-, 6.61-, and 2.95-fold in RA patients than healthy individuals, respectively (p < 0.001), whereas serum BAX levels were significantly reduced by 0.49-fold in RA patients compared to that of healthy individuals (p < 0.001).