Inhibition of differentiation and function of osteoclasts by dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)

A comparative metabolomic analysis reveals the metabolic variations among cartilage of Kashin-Beck disease and osteoarthritis

Aims

The metabolic variations between the cartilage of osteoarthritis (OA) and Kashin-Beck disease (KBD) remain largely unknown. Our study aimed to address this by conducting a comparative analysis of the metabolic profiles present in the cartilage of KBD and OA.

Methods

Cartilage samples from patients with KBD (n = 10) and patients with OA (n = 10) were collected during total knee arthroplasty surgery. An untargeted metabolomics approach using liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was conducted to investigate the metabolomics profiles of KBD and OA. LC-MS raw data files were converted into mzXML format and then processed by the XCMS, CAMERA, and metaX toolbox implemented with R software. The online Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) database was used to annotate the metabolites by matching the exact molecular mass data of samples with those from the database.

Results

A total of 807 ion features were identified for KBD and OA, including 577 positive (240 for upregulated and 337 for downregulated) and 230 negative (107 for upregulated and 123 for downregulated) ions. After annotation, LC-MS identified significant expressions of ten upregulated and eight downregulated second-level metabolites, and 183 upregulated and 162 downregulated first-level metabolites between KBD and OA. We identified differentially expressed second-level metabolites that are highly associated with cartilage damage, including dimethyl sulfoxide, uric acid, and betaine. These metabolites exist in sulphur metabolism, purine metabolism, and glycine, serine, and threonine metabolism.

Conclusion

This comprehensive comparative analysis of metabolism in OA and KBD cartilage provides new evidence of differences in the pathogenetic mechanisms underlying cartilage damage in these two conditions.

Sex specific emergence of trisomic Dyrk1a-related skeletal phenotypes in the development of a Down syndrome mouse model

Skeletal insufficiency affects all individuals with Down syndrome (DS) or Trisomy 21 (Ts21) and may alter bone strength throughout development due to a reduced period of bone formation and early attainment of peak bone mass compared to typically developing individuals. Appendicular skeletal deficits also appear in males before females with DS. In femurs of male Ts65Dn DS model mice, cortical deficits were pronounced throughout development, but trabecular deficits and Dyrk1a overexpression were transitory until postnatal day (P) 30 when there were persistent trabecular and cortical deficits and Dyrk1a was trending overexpression. Correction of DS-related skeletal deficits by a purported DYRK1A inhibitor or through genetic means beginning at P21 was not effective at P30, but germline normalization of Dyrk1a improved male bone structure by P36. Trabecular and cortical deficits in female Ts65Dn mice were evident at P30 but subsided by P36, typifying periodic developmental skeletal normalizations that progressed to more prominent bone deficiencies. Sex-dependent differences in skeletal deficits with a delayed impact of trisomic Dyrk1a are important to find temporally specific treatment periods for bone and other phenotypes associated with Ts21.

Application of Dimethyl Sulfoxide as a Therapeutic Agent and Drug Vehicle for Eye Diseases

Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is an amphipathic molecule widely used as a solvent for water-insoluble substances, cryopreserving, and cell-biological therapies. It has known properties as an inducer of cellular differentiation, a free radical scavenger, and a radioprotectant. In addition, DMSO is used for its various therapeutic and pharmaceutical properties, such as anti-inflammatory, local and systemic analgesic, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and membrane penetration enhancement agents. DMSO treatment can be given orally, intravenously, or topically for a wide range of indications. The administration of DMSO exhibits favorable outcomes in human eye diseases with low to none observed ocular or systemic ocular toxicity. Nevertheless, DMSO is an essential and nonpatentable potential therapeutic agent that remains underexplored and ignored by pharmaceutical developers and ophthalmologists. This current review takes data from experimental and clinical studies that have been published to substantiate the potential therapeutic efficacy of DMSO and stimulate the research of its application in clinical ophthalmology. Given that DMSO is inexpensive, safe, and easily formulated into therapeutic medicinal products and conventional ophthalmological drugs, this compound should be further explored and studied in the treatment of a variety of acute and chronic ocular disorders.

Expansion of Human Dental Pulp Cells In Vitro Under Different Cryopreservation Conditions

BACKGROUND/AIM

To optimize the expansion of human dental pulp cells in vitro by exploring several cryopreservation methodologies.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The intra-dental pulp tissues from healthy subjects were extracted and divided into three separate tissue segments, which were randomly divided into the three following groups; the fresh group, the 5% DMSO group, and the 10% DMSO group. In the fresh group, dental pulp cells were directly cultivated as primary cultures, whereas in the DMSO groups, the dental pulp cells were cultivated from cryopreserved pulp tissue segments one month later.

RESULTS

The cell yield and the time it took for the cells to grow out of the pulp tissue and attach to the culture plate varied among the three groups; the 5% DMSO group was inferior to the fresh group but superior to the 10% DMSO group (p<0.05). Moreover, no differences were found at the 1st passage amongst the three groups regarding the following aspects (p>0.05); colony formation rate and cell survival rate. Furthermore, no differences were noted at the 3^rd passage regarding the following aspects (p>0.05); proliferation ability, cell growth curve and surface marker expression of dental pulp cells.

CONCLUSION

Five percent DMSO may be the most optimal condition for tissue storage to preserve stem cells in situ.

Immunomodulatory effects and potential clinical applications of dimethyl sulfoxide

Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) was discovered during the 19th century by the German chemical industry. DMSO comprises a highly polar group and two non-polar domains, which render it soluble in both aqueous solutions and organic solutions. Furthermore, DMSO can penetrate the cell membrane of both the mammalian cells and the non-mammalian cells and prevent freeze-thaw injuries to the cells. Thus, it is frequently used for the cryopreservation of cells and tissues for laboratory and clinical applications. In contrast to this traditional application, DMSO has recently been shown to possess immunomodulatory effects, such as immune enhancement, and anti-inflammatory effects in the innate immunity. In addition, DMSO also affects the adaptive immunity by regulating the expression of transcription factors in immune cells. This review briefly summarizes and highlights the roles and immunomodulatory effects of DMSO on the immune system and reveals the future clinical therapeutic potential of DMSO treatment in cancer, in autoimmune diseases and in chronic inflammatory diseases.

STAT3 Phosphorylation Mediating DMSO's Function on Fetal Cardiomyocyte Proliferation with Developmental Changes

Endogenous cardiac regeneration has been focused for decades as a potential therapy for heart diseases with cell loss, and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) has been proposed as a treatment for many diseases. In this study, we aimed to investigate the function of DMSO on fetal cardiomyocyte proliferation. By tracing BrdU⁺/α actinin⁺ cells or Ki67⁺/α actinin⁺ cells with immunohistochemical staining, we found that DMSO remarkably promoted fetal cardiomyocytes proliferation, and at the late developmental stage (LDS), such effects were more efficient than that at early developmental stage (EDS). Western blot data revealed a significant increase in STAT3 phosphorylation under DMSO treatments at LDS, while not at EDS. Consistently, STAT3 phosphorylation blocker STA21 could greatly reverse DMSO's function at LDS whereas hardly at EDS. Moreover, hearts at the EDS had less total STAT3 protein, but relatively much higher level of phosphorylated STAT3. This suggests that DMSO promote fetal cardiomyocytes proliferation, and STAT3 phosphorylation play a pivotal role in DMSO's function. With maturation, DMSO exerted a better ability to favor cardiomyocyte proliferation depending on STAT3 phosphorylation. Therefore, DMSO could serve as an effective, economic, and safe therapy for heart diseases with cell loss.

Adrenomedullin inhibits osteoclast differentiation through the suppression of receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand-induced nuclear factor-κB activation in glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis

The current study aimed to improve the understanding on the association between adrenomedullin and osteoporosis in mice with glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis. Bone resorption and osteoporosis-associated indexes, including maximum load, stiffness, energy to failure, ultimate strength, elastic modulus, post-yield displacement and post-yield displacement, in mice with osteoporosis were analyzed in order to evaluate the effect of adrenomedullin. The receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL)-induced osteoclast differentiation was investigated subsequent to treatment with adrenomedullin in vitro. The results demonstrated that adrenomedullin significantly improved bone mass loss, density, bone strength and osteoporosis disease in the mice with glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis. In addition, adrenomedullin markedly improved the osteoporosis-associated NFATc1, TRAP, OSCAR and c-Fos expression levels. Furthermore, the current findings indicated that RANKL-mediated osteoclast differentiation was suppressed in vitro and in vivo. Notably, the data revealed that adrenomedullin significantly improved the osteoporotic symptoms through inhibition of RANKL-induced NF-κB activation in glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis. In conclusion, adrenomedullin serves an essential role in the progression of glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis, regulating the bone mass loss, density and strength through the NF-κB signaling pathway.

Isolation, characterization and immunomodulatory-associated gene transcription of Wharton's jelly-derived multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells at different trimesters of cow pregnancy

The possibility of isolating bovine mesenchymal multipotent stromal cells (MSCs) from fetal adnexa is an interesting prospect due to the potential use of these cells in biotechnological applications. However, little is known about the properties of these progenitor cells in bovine species. Wharton's jelly (WJ) MSC cells were obtained from the umbilical cord of bovine fetuses at three different stages of pregnancy and divided into groups 1, 2 and 3 according to gestational trimester. Cell morphology, from the three stages of pregnancy, typically appeared fibroblast-like spindle-shaped, presenting the same viability and number. Moreover, the proliferative ability of T-cells in response to a mitogenic stimulus was suppressed when WJMSC cells were added to the culture. Multilineage properties were confirmed by their ability to undergo adipogenic, osteogenic/chondrogenic and neurogenic differentiation. Mesenchymal phenotyping, CD105+, CD29+, CD73+ and CD90+ cell markers were detected in all three cell groups, yet these markers were considered more expressed in MSCs of group 2 (p < 0.005). Expression of cytokines IL2, IL6RR, INFAC, INFB1, IFNG, TNF and LTBR were downregulated, whereas IL1F10 expression was upregulated in all tested WJMSCs. The present study demonstrated that WJMSCs harvested from the bovine umbilical cord at different gestational stages showed proliferative capacity, immune privilege and stemness potential.