Morphological, biochemical and mechanical properties of articular cartilage and subchondral bone in rat tibial plateau are age related

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate age-related changes in the morphological, biochemical and mechanical properties of articular cartilage (AC) and subchondral bone in the rat tibial plateau. Female Wistar rats were grouped according to age (1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 16 and 17 months, with 10 rats in each group). The ultrastructures, surface topographies, and biochemical and mechanical properties of the AC and subchondral bone in the knee joints of the rats were determined through X-ray micro-tomography, histology, immunohistochemistry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy and nanoindentation. We found that cartilage thickness decreased with age. This decrease was accompanied by functional condensation of the underlying subchondral bone. Increased thickness and bone mineral density and decreased porosity were observed in the subchondral plate (SP). Growth decreased collagen II expression in the tibial cartilage. The arrangement of trabeculae in the subchondral trabecular bone became disordered. The thickness and strength of the fibers decreased with age, as detected by SEM. The SP and trabeculae in the tibial plateau increased in roughness in the first phase (1-9 months of age), and then were constant in the second phase (11-17 months of age). Meanwhile, the roughness of the AC changed significantly in the first phase (1-9 months of age), but the changes were independent of age thereafter. This study gives a comprehensive insight into the growth-related structural, biochemical and mechanical changes in the AC and subchondral bone. The results presented herein may contribute to a new understanding of the pathogenesis of age-related bone diseases.

Properties of Cartilage–Subchondral Bone Junctions: A Narrative Review with Specific Focus on the Growth Plate

“…154 Subchondral bone thickness and mineral density increase, and porosity decreases during skeletal development. 155…”

TRPM7 channel inhibition attenuates rheumatoid arthritis articular chondrocyte ferroptosis by suppression of the PKCα-NOX4 axis

“…Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a most common autoimmune inflammatory disorder characterized by synovial inflammation, articular cartilage destruction and bone erosion, which eventually leads to joint deformity and disability [ 1 ]. Articular cartilage is an important structural and functional unit of joints, and its integrity is necessary to the normal movement of movable joints [ 2 ]. Degeneration and damage of articular cartilage are the main causes of joint function loss in patients with RA [ 3 ].…”

Morphological and mechanical alterations in articular cartilage and subchondral bone during spontaneous hip osteoarthritis in guinea pigs

“…Based on its capacity of acquiring 3D surface topographical data at sub-micro- and nanoscales, AFM is extensively used to evaluate the surface characterisations of biological tissues at the nanoscale ( Dufrêne, 2002 ; Stolz et al, 2009 ; Ghosh et al, 2013 ; Iijima et al, 2015 ; Iijima et al, 2017 ; Ren et al, 2018 ; Plaut et al, 2019 ). In the current study, nanostructure changes in articular cartilage and subchondral bone were observed by AFM.…”

“…Proximal femoral bone specimens with a thickness of 2 mm were cut perpendicular to the femoral neck axis. The samples were then dehydrated in a series of alcohol baths (80%, 90%, and 100%, each for 24 h), ultrasonically cleaned in alcohol for 5 min, and naturally dried at room temperature ( Ren et al, 2018 ).…”