Moderate exercise protects against joint disease in a murine model of osteoarthritis

Abstract

Exercise is recommended as a non-pharmacological therapy for osteoarthritis (OA). Various exercise regimes, with differing intensities and duration, have been used in a range of OA rodent models. These studies show gentle or moderate exercise reduces the severity of OA parameters while high intensity load bearing exercise is detrimental. However, these studies were largely conducted in rats or in mouse models induced by severe injury, age or obesity, whilst destabilization of the medial meniscus (DMM) in mice has become a widely accepted model due to its lower variability, moderate progression and timescale. The present study was undertaken to provide insight into the effect of moderate exercise on early joint pathology in the DMM mouse model. Exercise was induced a week after induction by forced wheel walking for three or 7 weeks. Joints were analyzed by microcomputed tomography and histology. Assessment of skeletal parameters revealed that exercise offered protection against cartilage damage after 7 weeks of exercise, and a temporary protection against osteosclerosis was displayed after 3 weeks of exercise. Furthermore, exercise modified the metaphyseal trabecular microarchitecture of the osteoarthritic leg in both time points examined. Collectively, our findings corroborate previous studies showing that exercise has an important effect on bone in OA, which subsequently, at 8 weeks post-induction, translates into less cartilage damage. Thus, providing an exercise protocol in a surgical mouse model of OA, which can be used in the future to further dissect the mechanisms by which moderate exercise ameliorates OA.

Pannexin 3deletion in mice results in knee osteoarthritis and intervertebral disc degeneration after forced treadmill running

“…Studies like these are important as they highlight the molecular differences between various factors that influence OA progression. Considering studies have shown that exercise can induce knee OA [29][30][31], and paradoxically, studies also show exercise reduces OA development [25,32] in mice, it would be imperative to elucidate the genetic factors, and also the exercise parameters that elicit these contrasting results. Here we implemented a modified forced treadmill running protocol previously reported to induce knee OA in mice [14].…”

Pannexin 3 deletion in mice results in knee osteoarthritis and intervertebral disc degeneration after forced treadmill running

“…38 Bomer et al, 22 37 Studies like these are important as they highlight the molecular differences between various factors that influence OA progression. Considering studies have shown that forced treadmill running can induce knee OA, [39][40][41] and, paradoxically, also forced treadmill running can reduces OA development in mice, 35,42 it would be imperative to elucidate the genetic factors alongside the exercise parameters that elicit these contrasting results.…”

Enlarged colony housing promotes linear progression of subchondral bone remodeling in joint instability rat models

“…To elicit OA in rats, subchondral bone and cartilage changes can be induced by instability surgery, with varying levels of severity ( Bendele, 2001 ; Hayami et al, 2006 ; Lampropoulou-Adamidou et al, 2014 ; McCoy, 2015 ; Kuyinu et al, 2016 ). The intensity of changes is influenced by several factors, including the duration and the degree of joint loading affected by activity ( Iijima et al, 2015 ; Huesa et al, 2022 ).…”