OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of osteoclastogenesis inhibitory factor/osteoprotegerin (OPG) on chondrocytes in the development of osteoarthritis (OA) in vivo. METHODS To determine the role of endogenous OPG in the progression of OA, OA was surgically induced in OPG+/- mice and their wild-type (WT) littermates. To determine the role of exogenous OPG, knee joints of C57BL/6J mice with sur...

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are expressed in a highly tissue-specific manner where they function in various aspects of cell biology, often as key regulators of gene expression. In this study we established a role for lncRNAs in chondrocyte differentiation. Using RNA sequencing we identified a human articular chondrocyte repertoire of lncRNAs from normal hip cartilage donated by neck of femur...

Defects of load-bearing connective tissues such as articular cartilage, often result from trauma, degenerative or age-related disease. Osteoarthritis (OA) presents a major clinical challenge to clinicians due to the limited inherent repair capacity of articular cartilage. Articular cartilage defects are increasingly common among the elderly population causing pain, reduced joint function and si...

INTRODUCTION: Acute impact-induced joint trauma often affects young and middleaged adults and significantly increases the risk of developing posttraumatic osteoarthritis. Since joint replacement surgery is not a realistic option for young individuals, there is a need for the development of alternative therapies to treat large cartilage defects. Because of their unlimited self-renewal, developme...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the potential of hyaluronic acid (HA)-coated bovine serum albumin nanoparticles (BSANPs) as a novel chondrocyte-targeting drug-delivery nanomedicine. METHODS The HA-BSANPs were characterized by dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and X-ray diffraction. Fluorescence imaging was used to visualize the distribution o...

CONTEXT Articular cartilage has a unique functional architecture capable of providing a lifetime of pain-free joint motion. This tissue, however, undergoes substantial age-related physiologic, mechanical, biochemical, and functional changes that reduce its ability to overcome the effects of mechanical stress and injury. Many factors affect joint function in the maturing athlete-from chondrocyte...

UNLABELLED Articular cartilage is not a physiologically self-renewing tissue. Injury of cartilage often progresses from the articular surface to the subchondral bone, leading to pathogenesis of tissue degenerative diseases, such as osteoarthritis. Therapies to treat cartilage defects using autologous chondrocyte-based tissue engineering have been developed and used for more than 20 years; howev...

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are expressed in a highly tissue-specific manner and function in various aspects of cell biology, often as key regulators of gene expression. In this study, we established a role for lncRNAs in chondrocyte differentiation. Using RNA sequencing we identified a human articular chondrocyte repertoire of lncRNAs from normal hip cartilage donated by neck of femur fract...

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the main reason for lameness in racehorses. OA is currently clinically diagnosed late in the disease process, when irreversible damages to the articular cartilage have become evident. Diagnostic biomarkers that can detect the disease before irreversible tissue damage and prior to the onset of clinical signs would be very desirable. These biomarkers could be used to monito...

INTRODUCTION Soccer is the most popular sport worldwide with about 200 million currently registered active players.1 The frequency of soccer injuries is estimated at 10-35 per 1000 hours of competition, with the majority occurring in the lower extremities. Knee injuries account for 15-40% of soccer-related injuries.2,3 While numerous studies have described injuries of the cruciate ligaments and...