Dataset Information

Combined enzymatic degradation of proteoglycans and collagen significantly alters intratissue strains in articular cartilage during cyclic compression.

ABSTRACT: As degenerative joint diseases such as osteoarthritis (OA) progress, the matrix constituents, particularly collagen fibrils and proteoglycans, become damaged, therefore deteriorating the tissue's mechanical properties. This study aims to further the understanding of the effect of degradation of the different cartilage constituents on the mechanical loading environment in early stage OA. To this end, intact, collagen- and proteoglycan-depleted cartilage plugs were cyclically loaded in axial compression using an experimental model simulating in vivo cartilage-on-cartilage contact conditions in a micro-MRI scanner. Depletion of collagen and proteoglycans was achieved through enzymatic degradation with collagenase and chondroitinase ABC, respectively. Using a displacement-encoded imaging sequence (DENSE), strains were computed and compared in intact and degraded samples. The results revealed that, while degradation with one or the other enzyme had little effect on the contact strains, degradation with a combination of both enzymes caused an increase in the means and variance of the transverse, axial and shear strains, particularly in the superficial zone of the cartilage. This effect indicates that the balance between cartilage matrix constituents plays an essential role in maintaining the mechanical properties of the tissue, and a disturbance in this balance leads to a decrease of the load bearing capacity associated with degenerative joint diseases such as OA.

SUBMITTER: Pastrama MI

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7028440 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Combined enzymatic degradation of proteoglycans and collagen significantly alters intratissue strains in articular cartilage during cyclic compression.

Pastrama Maria-Ioana MI Ortiz Ana Caxaido AC Zevenbergen Lianne L Famaey Nele N Gsell Willy W Neu Corey P CP Himmelreich Uwe U Jonkers Ilse I

Journal of the mechanical behavior of biomedical materials 20190531

As degenerative joint diseases such as osteoarthritis (OA) progress, the matrix constituents, particularly collagen fibrils and proteoglycans, become damaged, therefore deteriorating the tissue's mechanical properties. This study aims to further the understanding of the effect of degradation of the different cartilage constituents on the mechanical loading environment in early stage OA. To this end, intact, collagen- and proteoglycan-depleted cartilage plugs were cyclically loaded in axial compr ...[more]

PMID: 31349141

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Project description:BackgroundArticular cartilage (AC) is the layer of tissue that covers the articulating ends of the bones in diarthrodial joints. Across species, adult AC shows an arcade-like structure with collagen predominantly perpendicular to the subchondral bone near the bone, and collagen predominantly parallel to the articular surface near the articular surface. Recent studies into collagen fibre orientation in stillborn and juvenile animals showed that this structure is absent at birth. Since the collagen structure is an important factor for AC mechanics, the absence of the adult Benninghoff structure has implications for perinatal AC mechanobiology. The current objective is to quantify the dynamics of collagen network development in a model animal from birth to maturity. We further aim to show the presence or absence of zonal differentiation at birth, and to assess differences in collagen network development between different anatomical sites of a single joint surface. We use quantitative polarised light microscopy to investigate properties of the collagen network and we use the sheep (Ovis aries) as our model animal.ResultsPredominant collagen orientation is parallel to the articular surface throughout the tissue depth for perinatal cartilage. This remodels to the Benninghoff structure before the sheep reach sexual maturity. Remodelling of predominant collagen orientation starts at a depth just below the future transitional zone. Tissue retardance shows a minimum near the articular surface at all ages, which indicates the presence of zonal differentiation at all ages. The absolute position of this minimum does change between birth and maturity. Between different anatomical sites, we find differences in the dynamics of collagen remodelling, but no differences in adult collagen structure.ConclusionsThe collagen network in articular cartilage remodels between birth and sexual maturity from a network with predominant orientation parallel to the articular surface to a Benninghoff network. The retardance minimum near, but not at, the articular surface at all ages shows that a zonal differentiation is already present in the perinatal animals. In these animals, the zonal differentiation can not be correlated to the collagen network orientation. We find no difference in adult collagen structure in the nearly congruent metacarpophalangeal joint, but we do find differences in the dynamics of collagen network remodelling.

Dataset Information

Combined enzymatic degradation of proteoglycans and collagen significantly alters intratissue strains in articular cartilage during cyclic compression.

Publications

Combined enzymatic degradation of proteoglycans and collagen significantly alters intratissue strains in articular cartilage during cyclic compression.

Similar Datasets

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