Tendon injury induces a local inflammatory response, characterized by the induction of pro-inflammatory cytokines. The aim of the present study was to analyze the effects of TNFa, IL-6 and IL-10 on key parameters of tendon homeostasis. Cultured primary human tenocytes were treated with the recombinant cytokines IL-6, IL-10, TNFa, or combinations of TNFa with IL-6 and IL-10 (10 ng/mL, 6, 24 h). Expression of type I collagen, elastin, MMP-1, TNFa, IL-1b, IL-6, IL-10, and suppressors of cytokine signaling (SOCS1, 3) was analyzed with the use of RTD-PCR, immunocytochemistry, and Western blot analysis. In response to TNFa, tenocytes reduced their type I collagen deposition but increased their elastin gene expression and highly upregulated their expression for MMP-1, pro-inflammatory (TNFa, IL-1b) and immunoregulatory (IL-6, IL-10) cytokines. TNFa stimulation augmented SOCS1, whereas SOCS3 expression in tenocytes was also induced by IL-6. The treatment of tenocytes with IL-6 and IL-10 had no effect on cytokine expression. Neither IL-6 nor IL-10 modulated the observed effects of TNFa significantly. These results indicate that TNFa strongly activates the tenocytes to amplify their own TNFa expression and, subsequently, that of other regulatory cytokines and matrix degrading enzymes. However, the impact of IL-6 and IL-10 on tenocytes remains unclear. ß