In rheumatoid arthritis patients, although whole blood from rheumatoid arthritis patients with high C-reactive protein and HMGB1 levels showed reduced vagus nerve activity when stimulated by LPS, nicotine (100 μM) attenuated the release of inducible cytokine TNF, implicated in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (63). The gene discussed is CRP; the disease is rheumatoid arthritis.