Objective. To investigate the mechanism of the inhibitory action of hyaluronan (HA) on interleukin-1␤ (IL-1␤)-stimulated production of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in human articular cartilage.Methods. IL-1␤ was added to normal and osteoarthritic (OA) human articular cartilage in explant culture to stimulate MMP production. Articular cartilage was incubated or preincubated with a clinically used form of 800-kd HA to assess its effect on IL-1␤-induced MMPs. Levels of secreted MMPs 1, 3, and 13 in conditioned media were detected by immunoblotting; intracellular MMP synthesis in chondrocytes was evaluated by immunofluorescence microscopy. Penetration of HA into cartilage tissue and its binding to CD44 were analyzed by fluorescence microscopy using fluoresceinated HA. Blocking experiments with anti-CD44 antibody were performed to investigate the mechanism of action of HA.Results. Treatment and pretreatment with 800-kd HA at 1 mg/ml resulted in significant suppression of IL-1␤-stimulated production of MMPs 1, 3, and 13 in normal and OA cartilage explant culture. Fluorescence histocytochemistry revealed that HA penetrated cartilage tissue and localized in the pericellular matrix around chondrocytes. HA-binding blocking experiments using anti-CD44 antibody demonstrated that the association of HA with chondrocytes was mediated by CD44. Preincubation with anti-CD44 antibody, which suppressed IL-1␤-stimulated MMPs, reversed the inhibitory effect of HA on MMP production that was induced by IL-1␤ in normal and OA cartilage.Conclusion. This study demonstrates that HA effectively inhibits IL-1␤-stimulated production of MMP-1, MMP-3, and MMP-13, which supports the clinical use of HA in the treatment of OA. The action of HA on IL-1␤ may involve direct interaction between HA and CD44 on chondrocytes.Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most prevalent disease of articular joints and is the major cause of disability in the elderly. Pathophysiologic changes occur in OA cartilage due to the excessive expression of cartilagedegrading proteinases, the resultant progressive breakdown of collagen fibers, and the degradation of proteoglycan, mainly aggrecan (1).Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are zinccontaining, calcium-dependent proteinases, which collectively degrade all components of the extracellular matrix. MMPs are considered to be important in the chondrolytic processes that contribute to the degenerative changes in OA cartilage (2-4). Recent studies have identified the messenger RNA (mRNA) for some MMPs, such as MMP-1, in human OA cartilage (4,5), and other investigators have reported specific MMP proteins and collagenasemediated type II collagen degradation products (6,7). There is a consensus that these enzymes play a critical role in intrinsic chondrocyte-mediated degenerative changes of the cartilage matrix in OA. Proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1 (IL-1) strongly stimulate the expression of MMPs by chondrocytes in arthritis (8).Hyaluronan (HA) is a major component of synovial fluid and cartilage matrix, and it play...

ABSTRACT:We investigated the effects of hyaluronan (HA) on interleukin-1␤ (IL-1␤)-stimulated matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-13 production in human chondrocytes from patients with osteoarthritis (OA) or rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Secreted levels of MMP-13 in conditioned media were detected by immunoblotting, while intracellular MMP-13 synthesis in articular cartilage was evaluated by immunofluorescence microscopic analysis. Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs), p38, extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK), and c-jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK) were assessed by Western blotting. IL-1␤ (2 ng/ml) stimulates the secretion of MMP-13 in both OA and RA chondrocytes. Inhibition studies using specific MAPK inhibitors revealed that IL-1␤ induced MMP-13 via p38 in both OA and RA chondrocytes. HA down-regulates IL-1␤-stimulated MMP-13 and phosphorylated p38 (p-p38) in a dose-dependent manner (0.1, 1, 2, and 4 mg/ml). When used at 4 mg/ml, HA inhibits p-p38 phosphorylation by more than 60%. In response to IL-1␤, RA chondrocytes express a higher level of p-p38 than that of OA chondrocytes. Inhibition of CD44, using a blocking antibody, significantly reversed the inhibitory effect of HA on both MMP-13 and p-p38. Our study clearly shows that HA inhibits IL-1␤-induced MMP-13 via its principal receptor, CD44, and subsequent intracellular p38 MAPK signaling in OA and RA chondrocytes.

Activated protein C (APC) is a natural anticoagulant that exerts anti-inflammatory and cytoprotective properties mediated through the protease activated receptor (PAR)-1. APC can also proteolytically cleave PAR-2, although subsequent function is unknown. On the basis of recent evidence that APC promotes wound healing, the aim of this study was to determine whether APC acts through PARs to heal murine excisional wounds or to regulate human cultured keratinocyte function and to determine the signaling mechanisms. Topical administration of APC accelerated wound healing in wild-type mice and, unexpectedly, in PAR-1 knockout mice. PAR-2 knockout mice healed significantly slower than wildtype mice, and healing was not altered by adding APC, indicating that APC acts through PAR-2 to heal wounds. In cultured human primary keratinocytes, APC enhanced PAR-2, stimulated proliferation, activated phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Src/Akt, and inhibited phosphorylated (P)-p38. Inhibiting PAR-1 or PAR-2, by small-interfering RNA or blocking antibody, reversed APC-induced keratinocyte proliferation and Akt activation. Blocking PAR-2, but not PAR-1, reversed the inhibition of P-p38 by APC. Furthermore, inhibition of P-p38 accelerated wound healing in wild-type mice. In summary, although APC acts through both PAR-1 and PAR-2 to activate Akt and to increase keratinocyte proliferation, APC-induced murine wound healing depends on PAR-2 activity and inhibition of P-p38.