Age‐related changes and effect of exercise on the molecular composition of immature equine superficial digital flexor tendons

Abstract

on the tenocytes resulting in a decrease of the production of PSGAGs. Therefore, inappropriate or excessive exercise may damage developing tendon, with limited recovery after normalising the exercise level. These possibly deleterious effects of a training regimen on tendon development may be important for the management of young would-be equine athletes.

Reproducibility and feasibility of acoustoelastography in the superficial digital flexor tendons of clinically normal horses

“…Exercise has been shown to affect the collagen fibers (reduced crimp angle and decreased fibril diameter) as well as the extracellular matrix (decreased cartilage oligomeric matrix protein) in both mature and immature SDFTs. 5,39 Attempts to sonographically identify the effect of exercise on equine tendons by monitoring their cross-sectional area have led to mixed results; in some studies, no effect was detected, whereas in others, training-induced adaptive hypertrophy was apparent. 36,[40][41][42] Most studies did not include histologic examination of tendon tissues to confirm that the small increases in cross-sectional area were not a result of subclinical injury.…”

The potential role of training programmesin reducing injuries

“…3). There were also differences in collagen fibril diameter distribution (Cherdchutham et al 2001b) and biochemical composition (Cherdchutham et al 1999) between these groups of foals with higher cellularity and higher levels of polysulphated glycosaminoglycans (PSGAG) and hyaluronic acid (HA) in the pastured animals compared to the box-rested foals. Interestingly, in the foals that originated from the exercise groups and were joined in a single group to be euthanased at 11 months the differences in the abovementioned biochemical parameters between foals that had been box-rested respectively pastured during the first 5 months had disappeared.…”

Bewegen oder Untergehen - Über die Bedeutung der Bewegung während der muskuloskelettalen Entwicklung des Pferdes

“…In material from the EXOC-study cited above it was shown that the pasture-exercised foals had a larger CSA of the superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT) and the tendons ruptured at a higher load with less tissue stiffness than in the other two groups (Cherdchutham et al 2001a). There were also differences in collagen fibril diameter distribution (Cherdchutham et al 2001b) and biochemical composition (Cherdchutham et al 1999) between these groups of foals with higher cellularity and higher levels of polysulphated glycosaminoglycans (PSGAG) and hyaluronic acid (HA) in the pastured animals compared to the box-rested foals. Interestingly, in the foals, that originated from the exercise groups and were joined in a single group to be euthanased at 11 months, the differences in the abovementioned biochemical parameters between foals, that had been box-rested respectively pastured during the first 5 months, had disappeared.…”