Protective effect of glucosamine and risedronate (alone or in combination) against osteoarthritic changes in rat experimental model of immobilized knee

Preparation, typical structural characteristics and relieving effects on osteoarthritis of squid cartilage type II collagen peptides

The promoting effects of collagen and its derivatives on bone health have been uncovered. However, the structure and effects of type II collagen peptides from squid cartilage (SCIIP) on osteoarthritis still need to be clarified. In this study, SCIIP was prepared from squid throat cartilage with pretreatment by 0.2 mol/L NaOH at a liquid-solid ratio of 10:1 for 18 h and hydrolyzation using alkaline protease and flavourzyme at 50 °C for 4 h. The structure of SCIIP was characterized as a molecular weight lower than 5 kDa (accounting for 87.7 %), a high glycine level of 35.0 %, typical FTIR and CD features of collagen peptides, and a repetitive sequence of Gly-X-Y. GP(Hyp)GPD and GPAGP(Hyp)GD were separated and identified from SCIIP, and their binding energies with TLR4/MD-2 were - 8.4 and - 8.0 kcal/mol, respectively. SCIIP effectively inhibited NO production in RAW264.7 macrophages and alleviated osteoarthritis in rats through the TLR4/NF-κB pathway. Therefore, SCIIP exhibited the potential for application as an anti-osteoarthritis supplement.

L-Carnitine augments probenecid anti-inflammatory effect in monoiodoacetate-induced knee osteoarthritis in rats: involvement of miRNA-373/P2X7/NLRP3/NF-κB milieu

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease, whereas the underlying molecular trails involved in its pathogenesis are not fully elucidated. Hence, the current study aimed to investigate the role of miRNA-373/P2X7/NLRP3/NF-κB trajectory in its pathogenesis as well as the possible anti-inflammatory effects of probenecid and l-carnitine in ameliorating osteoarthritis via modulating this pathway. In the current study, male Sprague Dawley rats were used and monoiodoacetate (MIA)-induced knee osteoarthritis model was adopted. Probenecid and/or L-carnitine treatments for 14 days succeeded in reducing OA knee size and reestablishing motor coordination and joint mobility assessed by rotarod testing. Moreover, different treatments suppressed the elevated serum levels of IL-1β, IL-18, IL-6, and TNF-α via tackling the miRNA-373/P2X7/NLRP3/NF-κB, witnessed as reductions in protein expressions of P2X7, NLRP3, cleaved caspase-1 and NF-κB. These were accompanied by increases in procaspase-1 and IκB protein expression and in miRNA-373 gene expression OA knee to various extents. In addition, different regimens reversed the abnormalities observed in the H and E as well as Safranin O-Fast green OA knees stained sections. Probenecid or l-carnitine solely showed comparable results on the aforementioned parameters, whereas the combination therapy had the most prominent effect on ameliorating the aforementioned parameters. In conclusion, l-carnitine augmented the probenecid's anti-inflammatory effect to attenuate MIA-induced osteoarthritis in rats by provoking the miRNA-373 level and inhibiting the P2X7/NLRP3/NF-κB milieu, leading to the suppression of serum inflammatory cytokines: IL-1β, IL-18, IL-6, and TNF-α. These findings suggest the possibility of using probenecid and l-carnitine as a useful therapeutic option for treatment of osteoarthritis.

Effects of SKCPT on Osteoarthritis in Beagle Meniscectomy and Cranial Cruciate Ligament Transection Models

Osteoarthritis (OA) affects >500 million people globally, and this number is expected to increase. OA management primarily focuses on symptom alleviation, using non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, including Celecoxib. However, such medication has serious side effects, emphasizing the need for disease-specific treatment. The meniscectomy and cranial cruciate ligament transection (CCLx)-treated beagle dog was used to investigate the efficacy of a modified-release formulation of SKI306X (SKCPT) from Clematis mandshurica, Prunella vulgaris, and Trichosanthes kirilowii in managing arthritis. SKCPT's anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties have been assessed via stifle circumference, gait, incapacitance, histopathology, and ELISA tests. The different SKCPT concentrations and formulations also affected the outcome. SKCPT improved the gait, histopathological, and ELISA OA assessment parameters compared to the control group. Pro-inflammatory cytokines and matrix metalloproteinases were significantly lower in the SKCPT-treated groups than in the control group. This study found that SKCPT reduces arthritic lesions and improves abnormal gait. The 300 mg modified-release formulation was more efficacious than others, suggesting a promising approach for managing OA symptoms and addressing disease pathogenesis. A high active ingredient level and a release pattern make this formulation effective for twice-daily arthritis treatment.

Comparison of Kinesio-Tapping and Endurance Training in Improving Quality of Life in Knee Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is the most debilitating condition more commonly effecting the knee of its sufferers. Objective: To compare the effects of Kinesio Tape and endurance training in improving the quality of life of knee OA. Methods: This was a single blinded randomized control trail (RCT) in which 30 participants were included between age of 40-70 years who had OA of grade II-IV (K & L grade) and had no serious comorbidity. Simple convenient sampling technique was used for recruitment of participants. Two equal groups were made (n=15 each). Group A participants was incorporated endurance training at a rate of 2x/week for 4 weeks by use of therapeutic band along with conventional therapy and group B was given Kinesio-tape 2 session/ week for 4 weeks in combination with conventional therapy. Data were collected at baseline and after 4 weeks of intervention by use of NPRS and Sf-36 quality of life questionnaire. Man Whitney U test was performed for between groups analysis by use of SPSS version 21.0. Level of significance was kept p<0.05. Results: The mean age of participants in group A was 54.30 with standard deviation (SD) of 5.61 whereas of group B Mean ± SD of age was 53.45±7.73. There was no significant difference between groups as p>0.05. Conclusions: It was concluded from this study that both techniques are equally effective in improving the quality of life in knee osteoarthritis sufferers.

The Current Role of Disease-modifying Osteoarthritis Drugs

Contemporary treatments for osteoarthritis (OA) pursue only to alleviate the pain caused by the illness. Discovering disease-modifying osteoarthritis drugs (DMOADs) that can induce the repair and regeneration of articular tissues would be of substantial usefulness. The purpose of this manuscript is to review the contemporary role of DMOADs in managing OA. A narrative literature review on the subject, exploring the Cochrane Library and PubMed (MEDLINE) was performed. It was encountered that many publications have analyzed the impact of several DMOAD methods, including anti-cytokine therapy (tanezumab, AMG 108, adalimumab, etanercept, anakinra), enzyme inhibitors (M6495, doxycycline, cindunistat, PG-116800), growth factors (bone morphogenetic protein-7, sprifermin), gene therapy (micro ribonucleic acids, antisense oligonucleotides), peptides (calcitonin) and others (SM04690, senolitic, transient receptor potential vanilloid 4, neural EGFL-like 1, TPCA-1, tofacitinib, lorecivivint and quercitrin). Tanezumab has been demonstrated to alleviate hip and knee pain in individuals with OA but can cause major adverse events (osteonecrosis of the knee, rapid illness progression, augmented prevalence of total joint arthroplasty of involved joints, particularly when tanezumab is combined with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. SM04690 (a Wnt inhibitor) has been demonstrated to be safe and efficacious in alleviating pain and ameliorating function as measured by the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index. The intraarticular injection of lorecivivint is deemed safe and well tolerated, with no important reported systemic complications. In conclusion, even though DMOADs seem promising, their clinical effectiveness has not yet been demonstrated for managing OA. Until forthcoming studies can proved the medications' capacity to repair and regenerate tissues affected by OA, physicians should keep using treatments that only intend to alleviate pain.

Functional gelatin hydrogel scaffold with degraded-release of glutamine to enhance cellular energy metabolism for cartilage repair

Cartilage defect is one of the most common pathogenesis of osteoarthritis (OA), a degenerative joint disease that affects millions of people globally. Due to lack of nutrition and local metabolic inertia, the repair of cartilage has always been a difficult problem to be urgently solved. Herein, a functional gelatin hydrogel scaffold (GelMA-AG) chemically modified with alanyl-glutamine (AG) is proposed and prepared. The GelMA-AG can release glutamine through in vivo degradation that can activate the energy metabolism process of chondrocytes, thus effectively promoting damaged cartilage repair. The results demonstrate that compared with the AG-free gelatin hydrogel (GelMA), GelMA-AG exhibits an increase in both the mitochondrial membrane potential level and the production of intracellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP), while the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) of chondrocytes is decreased, thus contributing to the higher level of cellular metabolism and the lower inflammation in cartilage tissue. In contrast to GelMA (Reduced Modulus (Er): 24.33 MPa), the Er value of the remodeled rabbit knee articular cartilage is up to 70.14 MPa, which is more comparable to natural cartilage. In particular, this strategy does not involve exogenous cells and growth factors, and the therapeutic strategy of actively regulating the metabolic microenvironment through a functional gelatin hydrogel scaffold represents a new and prospective idea for the design of tissue engineering biomaterials in cartilage repair with simplification and effectiveness.

Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate: Is There Any Scientific Evidence for Their Effectiveness as Disease-Modifying Drugs in Knee Osteoarthritis Preclinical Studies?-A Systematic Review from 2000 to 2021

Simple Summary

Osteoarthritis is the most common progressive joint disease diagnosed in companion animals and its management continues to be a significant challenge. Nutraceuticals have been widely investigated over the years in the treatment of osteoarthritis and among them, glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate treatments are probably the most common therapies used in veterinary management. However, heterogeneous results were obtained among animal studies and the evidence of their efficacy is still controversial. Animal models have a crucial role in studying the histological changes and evaluating the therapy efficacy of different drugs. Consequently, we consider it may be of interest to evaluate the effectiveness of the most representative nutraceuticals in experimental animal studies of osteoarthritis. In this systematic review, we found a large inconsistency among the experimental protocols, but a positive cartilage response and biochemical modulation were observed in half of the evaluated articles, mainly associated with pre-emptive administrations and with some therapies’ combinations. Even though some of these results were promising, additional data are needed to draw solid conclusions, and further studies evaluating their efficacy in the long term and focusing on other synovial components may be needed to clarify their function.

Abstract

Glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate have been proposed due to their physiological and functional benefits in the management of osteoarthritis in companion animals. However, the scientific evidence for their use is still controversial. The purpose of this review was to critically elucidate the efficacy of these nutraceutical therapies in delaying the progression of osteoarthritis, evaluating their impact on the synovial knee joint tissues and biochemical markers in preclinical studies by systematically reviewing the last two decades of peer-reviewed publications on experimental osteoarthritis. Three databases (PubMed, Scopus and, Web of Science) were screened for eligible studies. Twenty-two articles were included in the review. Preclinical studies showed a great heterogeneity among the experimental designs and their outcomes. Generally, the evaluated nutraceuticals, alone or in combination, did not seem to prevent the subchondral bone changes, the synovial inflammation or the osteophyte formation. However, further experimental studies may be needed to evaluate their effect at those levels. Regarding the cartilage status and biomarkers, positive responses were identified in approximately half of the evaluated articles. Furthermore, beneficial effects were associated with the pre-emptive administrations, higher doses and, multimodality approaches with some combined therapies. However, additional studies in the long term and with good quality and systematic design are required.

No Effect of Long-Term Risedronate Use on Cartilage and Subchondral Bone in an Experimental Rabbit Model of Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most prevalent degenerative joint disease in animals and humans. It is characterized by pain, articular cartilage damage and joint stiffness. It has been suggested that the status of the subchondral bone compartment plays an important role in the initiation and progression of OA. Bisphosphonates have been proposed as a potential disease-modifying treatment for OA, however their effectiveness is not yet clear. Twenty-four male adult New Zealand rabbits were used to evaluate the effects of risedronate on the subchondral bone quality and cartilage degradation in a long-term model of experimentally induced OA. Animals underwent an anterior cruciate ligament transection and partial medial meniscectomy or sham operation in only one knee, which was randomly chosen, using the contralateral as healthy control. Animals were divided into three groups (n = 8): untreated control group and sham surgery control group; both groups received only vehicle; and risedronate group, treated with 2.5 mg orally weekly for 24 weeks. Stifle joints were harvested and scanned using a high-resolution micro-CT to evaluate the subchondral plate and trabecular bone changes. The macroscopic evaluation and histological analysis were determined using an adapted Osteoarthritis Research Society International scoring scheme to assess the cartilage degeneration. The lateral and medial femoral condyle and tibial plateau were evaluated. Additionally, the histological synovial membrane assessment was carried out. Sample analysis showed that the experimental model induced osteoarthritic changes in the operated joints, whereas in sham-operated rabbits, almost no histological changes were observed on articular cartilage surfaces. In terms of macroscopic and histological analyses, risedronate-treated animals did not show improved cartilage health compared with untreated operated rabbits, but a slightly anti-inflammatory activity was observed in the synovial membrane. Risedronate administration showed a slight tendency to increase subchondral bone plate thickness in lateral compartments but, it did not show conservation of periarticular bone and was not be able to suppress the osteophyte formation. In conclusion, long-term risedronate use did not demonstrate a positive effect on reducing the cartilage damage, and failed to prevent the subchondral bone changes and osteophytogenesis in an experimental rabbit model of OA.