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The Bone & Joint Journal Jun 2016The acetabular labrum is a soft-tissue structure which lines the acetabular rim of the hip joint. Its role in hip joint biomechanics and joint health has been of... (Review)
Review
UNLABELLED
The acetabular labrum is a soft-tissue structure which lines the acetabular rim of the hip joint. Its role in hip joint biomechanics and joint health has been of particular interest over the past decade. In normal hip joint biomechanics, the labrum is crucial in retaining a layer of pressurised intra-articular fluid for joint lubrication and load support/distribution. Its seal around the femoral head is further regarded as a contributing to hip stability through its suction effect. The labrum itself is also important in increasing contact area thereby reducing contact stress. Given the labrum's role in normal hip joint biomechanics, surgical techniques for managing labral damage are continuously evolving as our understanding of its anatomy and function continue to progress. The current paper aims to review the anatomy and biomechanical function of the labrum and how they are affected by differing surgical techniques.
TAKE HOME MESSAGE
The acetabular labrum plays a critical role in hip function and maintaining and restoring its function during surgical intervention remain an essential goal. Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2016;98-B:730-5.
Topics: Acetabulum; Biomechanical Phenomena; Cartilage, Articular; Hip Joint; Humans
PubMed: 27235512
DOI: 10.1302/0301-620X.98B6.37099 -
BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders Jul 2020Osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent musculoskeletal disease resulting in progressive degeneration of the hyaline articular cartilage within synovial joints. Current... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent musculoskeletal disease resulting in progressive degeneration of the hyaline articular cartilage within synovial joints. Current repair treatments for OA often result in poor quality tissue that is functionally ineffective compared to the hyaline cartilage and demonstrates increased failure rates post-treatment. Complicating efforts to improve clinical outcomes, animal models used in pre-clinical research show significant heterogeneity in their regenerative and degenerative responses associated with their species, age, genetic/epigenetic traits, and context of cartilage injury or disease. These can lead to variable outcomes when testing and validating novel therapeutic approaches for OA. Furthermore, it remains unclear whether protection against OA among different model systems is driven by inhibition of cartilage degeneration, enhancement of cartilage regeneration, or any combination thereof.
MAIN TEXT
Understanding the mechanistic basis underlying this context-dependent duality is essential for the rational design of targeted cartilage repair and OA therapies. Here, we discuss some of the critical variables related to the cross-species paradigm of degenerative and regenerative abilities found in pre-clinical animal models, to highlight that a gradient of regenerative competence within cartilage may exist across species and even in the greater human population, and likely influences clinical outcomes.
CONCLUSIONS
A more complete understanding of the endogenous regenerative potential of cartilage in a species specific context may facilitate the development of effective therapeutic approaches for cartilage injury and/or OA.
Topics: Aging; Animals; Cartilage, Articular; Chondrocytes; Chondrogenesis; Humans; Models, Animal; Osteoarthritis; Regeneration
PubMed: 32620156
DOI: 10.1186/s12891-020-03363-6 -
International Journal of Experimental... Apr 2023Degradation of the articular cartilage is a hallmark of osteoarthritis, a progressive and chronic musculoskeletal condition, affecting millions of people worldwide. The... (Review)
Review
Degradation of the articular cartilage is a hallmark of osteoarthritis, a progressive and chronic musculoskeletal condition, affecting millions of people worldwide. The activation of several signalling cascades is altered during disease development: among them, the Wnt signalling plays a pivotal role in the maintenance of tissue homeostasis. Increasing evidence is showing that its activation needs to be maintained within a certain range to avoid the triggering of degenerative mechanisms. In this review, we summarise our current knowledge about how a balanced activation of the Wnt signalling is maintained in the articular cartilage, with a particular focus on receptor-mediated mechanisms.
Topics: Humans; Cartilage, Articular; Wnt Signaling Pathway; Osteoarthritis; Homeostasis; Chondrocytes
PubMed: 36843204
DOI: 10.1111/iep.12472 -
Disease Models & Mechanisms Jun 2018Articular cartilage defects may initiate osteoarthritis. Subchondral drilling, a widely applied clinical technique to treat small cartilage defects, does not yield... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
Articular cartilage defects may initiate osteoarthritis. Subchondral drilling, a widely applied clinical technique to treat small cartilage defects, does not yield cartilage regeneration. Various translational studies aiming to improve the outcome of drilling have been performed; however, a robust systematic analysis of its translational evidence was still lacking. Here, we performed a systematic review of the outcome of subchondral drilling for knee cartilage repair in translational animal models. A total of 12 relevant publications studying 198 animals was identified, detailed study characteristics were extracted, and methodological quality and risk of bias were analyzed. Subchondral drilling led to improved repair outcome compared with defects that were untreated or treated with abrasion arthroplasty for cartilage repair in multiple translational models. Within the 12 studies, considerable subchondral bone changes were observed, including subchondral bone cysts and intralesional osteophytes. Furthermore, extensive alterations of the subchondral bone microarchitecture appeared in a temporal pattern in small and large animal models, together with specific topographic aspects of repair. Moreover, variable technical aspects directly affected the outcomes of osteochondral repair. The data from this systematic review indicate that subchondral drilling yields improved short-term structural articular cartilage repair compared with spontaneous repair in multiple small and large animal models. These results have important implications for future investigations aimed at an enhanced translation into clinical settings for the treatment of cartilage defects, highlighting the importance of considering specific aspects of modifiable variables such as improvements in the design and reporting of preclinical studies, together with the need to better understand the underlying mechanisms of cartilage repair following subchondral drilling.
Topics: Animals; Arthroplasty, Subchondral; Cartilage, Articular; Publication Bias; Regeneration; Research Report; Risk Factors; Translational Research, Biomedical
PubMed: 29728409
DOI: 10.1242/dmm.034280 -
Journal of Orthopaedic Research :... Jan 2022Anterior cruciate ligament injury and reconstruction (ACLR) affects articular cartilage thickness profiles about the tibial, femoral, and patellar surfaces; however,...
Anterior cruciate ligament injury and reconstruction (ACLR) affects articular cartilage thickness profiles about the tibial, femoral, and patellar surfaces; however, it's unclear whether the magnitudes of change in cartilage thickness, as well as the locations and areas over which these changes occur, differ between males and females. This is important to consider as differences exist between the sexes with regard to knee biomechanics, patellofemoral pain, and anatomic alignment, which influence risk of an index and repeated injury. Subjects underwent ACLR with a bone-patella tendon-bone autograft. At 4-year follow-up, they had asymptomatic knees; however, significant ACL injured-to-contralateral normal knee differences in articular cartilage thickness values were observed. Both thickening and thinning of cartilage occurred about the tibiofemoral and patellofemoral joints, relative to matched control subjects with normal knees. Further, the location of the areas and magnitudes of thickening and thinning were different between females and males. Thickening (swelling) of articular cartilage is an early finding associated with the onset of posttraumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA). Therefore, the increases in cartilage thickness that were observed in this cohort may represent early signs of the onset of PTOA that occur prior to the patient developing symptoms and radiographic evidence of this disease. The different locations of areas that underwent a change in cartilage thicknesses between males and females suggest that each sex responds differently to knee ligament trauma, reconstruction, rehabilitation, and return to activity, and indicates that sex-specific analysis should be utilized in studies of PTOA.
Topics: Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries; Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction; Cartilage, Articular; Female; Humans; Knee Joint; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Osteoarthritis; Patella
PubMed: 34288090
DOI: 10.1002/jor.25142 -
International Journal of Molecular... Feb 2023Physiological aging triggers a cascade of negative effects on the human body and the human joint is only one of the several compartments affected by this irreversible... (Review)
Review
Physiological aging triggers a cascade of negative effects on the human body and the human joint is only one of the several compartments affected by this irreversible and natural process. Osteoarthritis and cartilage degeneration can cause pain and disability; therefore, identifying the molecular processes underlying these phenomena and the biomarkers produced during physical activity is of critical importance. In the present review, the main goal was to identify and discuss the articular cartilage biomarkers analyzed in studies in which physical or sports activities were adopted and eventually to propose a standard operating procedure for the assessment. Articles collected from Pubmed, Web of Science, and Scopus were scrutinized to detect reliable cartilage biomarkers. The principal articular cartilage biomarkers detected in these studies were cartilage oligomeric matrix protein, matrix metalloproteinases, interleukins, and carboxy-terminal telopeptide. The articular cartilage biomarkers identified in this scoping review may aid in a better comprehension of where research on the topic is heading and offer a viable instrument for streamlining investigations on cartilage biomarker discovery.
Topics: Humans; Aging; Biomarkers; Cartilage, Articular; Exercise; Osteoarthritis
PubMed: 36835076
DOI: 10.3390/ijms24043662 -
Journal of Zhejiang University.... Mar 2024Osteoarthritis (OA), characterized by cartilage degeneration, synovial inflammation, and subchondral bone remodeling, is among the most common musculoskeletal disorders...
Osteoarthritis (OA), characterized by cartilage degeneration, synovial inflammation, and subchondral bone remodeling, is among the most common musculoskeletal disorders globally in people over 60 years of age. The initiation and progression of OA involves the abnormal metabolism of chondrocytes as an important pathogenic process. Cartilage degeneration features mitochondrial dysfunction as one of the important causative factors of abnormal chondrocyte metabolism. Therefore, maintaining mitochondrial homeostasis is an important strategy to mitigate OA. Mitophagy is a vital process for autophagosomes to target, engulf, and remove damaged and dysfunctional mitochondria, thereby maintaining mitochondrial homeostasis. Cumulative studies have revealed a strong association between mitophagy and OA, suggesting that the regulation of mitophagy may be a novel therapeutic direction for OA. By reviewing the literature on mitophagy and OA published in recent years, this paper elaborates the potential mechanism of mitophagy regulating OA, thus providing a theoretical basis for studies related to mitophagy to develop new treatment options for OA.
Topics: Humans; Middle Aged; Aged; Mitophagy; Osteoarthritis; Inflammation; Chondrocytes; Cartilage, Articular
PubMed: 38453635
DOI: 10.1631/jzus.B2300402 -
Osteoarthritis and Cartilage Jun 2018Osteoarthritis results from the degradation of articular cartilage and is one of the leading global causes of pain and immobility. Cartilage has a limited capacity for... (Review)
Review
Osteoarthritis results from the degradation of articular cartilage and is one of the leading global causes of pain and immobility. Cartilage has a limited capacity for self-repair. While repair can be enhanced through surgical intervention, current methods often generate inferior fibrocartilage and repair is transient. The development of tissue engineering strategies to improve repair outcomes is an active area of research. While small animal models such as rodents and rabbits are often used in early pre-clinical work, larger animals that better recapitulate the anatomy and loading of the human joint are required for late-stage preclinical evaluation. Because of their physiological similarities to humans, and low cost relative to other large animals, sheep are routinely used in orthopedic research, including cartilage repair studies. In recent years, there has been considerable research investment into the development of cartilage repair strategies that utilize mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSC). In contrast to autologous chondrocytes derived from biopsies of articular cartilage, MSC offer some benefits including greater expansion capacity and elimination of the risk of morbidity at the cartilage biopsy site. The disadvantages of MSC are related to the challenges of inducing and maintaining a stable chondrocyte-like cell population capable of generating hyaline cartilage. Ovine MSC (oMSC) biology and their utility in sheep cartilage repair models have not been reviewed. Herein, we review the biological properties of MSC derived from sheep tissues, and the use of these cells to study articular cartilage repair in this large animal model.
Topics: Animals; Cartilage, Articular; Cells, Cultured; Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation; Mesenchymal Stem Cells; Models, Animal; Osteoarthritis; Sheep
PubMed: 29580978
DOI: 10.1016/j.joca.2018.03.006 -
Current Opinion in Pharmacology Jun 2018The gold standard cell therapy for repair of articular cartilage defects is autologous chondrocyte implantation, with good outcomes long-term. Mesenchymal stromal/stem... (Review)
Review
The gold standard cell therapy for repair of articular cartilage defects is autologous chondrocyte implantation, with good outcomes long-term. Mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs) from bone marrow or connective tissues such as fat are being pursued as alternatives for cartilage repair, and are trialled via intra-articular administration in patients with knee osteoarthritis. Early-phase clinical studies concur on safety and provide some promising insight into efficacy, but the mechanism of action remains unclear. Recent studies implicate extracellular vesicles as important mediators of MSC action, offering exciting therapeutic prospects. Our increasing understanding of the mechanisms underlying intrinsic articular cartilage maintenance and repair fosters hope that novel/repurposed therapeutics could elicit repair through activation of endogenous stem/progenitor cells to maintain healthy joints and prevent osteoarthritis.
Topics: Animals; Cartilage, Articular; Chondrogenesis; Humans; Osteoarthritis; Recovery of Function; Regeneration; Signal Transduction; Stem Cell Transplantation; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 29625333
DOI: 10.1016/j.coph.2018.03.009 -
Cartilage-gut-microbiome axis: a new paradigm for novel therapeutic opportunities in osteoarthritis.RMD Open 2019DNA of gut microbiota can be found in synovium of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. This finding could result from the translocation of still alive bacteria from... (Review)
Review
DNA of gut microbiota can be found in synovium of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. This finding could result from the translocation of still alive bacteria from gut to joints through blood, since the diversified dormant microbiota of healthy human blood can be transiently resuscitated in vitro. The recent finding of gut microbiome in human cartilage, which differed between osteoarthritis and controls, suggests that a similar trafficking of dead or alive bacteria from gut microbiota physiologically occurs between gut and epiphysial bone marrow. Subchondral microbiota could enhance cartilage healing and transform components of deep cartilage matrix in metabolites with immunosuppressive properties. The differences of microbiome observed between hip and knee cartilage, either in osteoarthritis or controls, might be the counterpart of subtle differences in chondrocyte metabolism, themselves in line with differences in DNA methylation according to joints. Although bacteria theoretically cannot reach chondrocytes from the surface of intact cartilage, some bacteria enter the vascular channels of the epiphysial growth cartilage in young animals, whereas others can infect chondrocytes in vitro. In osteoarthritis, the early osteochondral plate angiogenesis may further enhance the ability of microbiota to locate close to the deeper layers of cartilage, and this might lead to focal dysbiosis, low-grade inflammation, cartilage degradation, epigenetic changes in chondrocytes and worsening of osteoarthritis. More studies on cartilage across different ethnic groups, weights, and according to age, are needed, to confirm the silent presence of gut microbiota close to human cartilage and better understand its physiologic and pathogenic significance.
Topics: Animals; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Biomarkers; Cartilage, Articular; Chondrocytes; DNA Methylation; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Hip Joint; Humans; Knee Joint; Metabolomics; Osteoarthritis
PubMed: 31673418
DOI: 10.1136/rmdopen-2019-001037