Multifaceted Protective Role of Glucosamine against Osteoarthritis: Review of Its Molecular Mechanisms

Abstract

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a joint disease resulting from cartilage degeneration and causing joint pain and stiffness. Glucosamine exerts chondroprotective effects and effectively reduces OA pain and stiffness. This review aims to summarise the mechanism of glucosamine in protecting joint health and preventing OA by conducting a literature search on original articles. Current evidence has revealed that glucosamine exhibits anti-inflammatory effects by reducing the levels of pro-inflammatory factors (such as tumour necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin-1, and interleukin-6) and enhancing the synthesis of proteoglycans that retard cartilage degradation and improve joint function. Additionally, glucosamine improves cellular redox status, reduces OA-mediated oxidative damages, scavenges free radicals, upregulates antioxidant proteins and enzyme levels, inhibits the production of reactive oxygen species, and induces autophagy to delay OA pathogenesis. In conclusion, glucosamine prevents OA and maintains joint health by reducing inflammation, improving the redox status, and inducing autophagy in joints. Further studies are warranted to determine the synergistic effect of glucosamine with other anti-inflammatory and/or antioxidative agents on joint health in humans.

Expert Opinion on the Extensive Use of Prescription Crystalline Glucosamine Sulfate in the Multimodal Treatment of Osteoarthritis in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Armenia

“…Glucosamine induces tissue regeneration by enhancing stem cell proliferation, and chondrogenic and osteoblastic differentiation. 46 Furthermore, it increases the levels of anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-2, IL-10), lowers p38 MAPK and c-JNK expression, increases extracellular-signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2) expression, inhibits nuclear factor-kB (NF-kB) and nod-like receptor protein 3 ( NLRP3 ) inflammasome and caspase-1 activation. Glucosamine also possesses antioxidant properties.…”

Green Analytical Method for Simultaneous Determination of Glucosamine and Calcium in Dietary Supplements by Capillary Electrophoresis with Capacitively Coupled Contactless Conductivity Detection

“…Glucosamine (2-amino-2-deoxy-D-glucose) is an amino monosaccharide with essential roles in the biochemical synthesis of glycosylated proteins and lipids [1]. Intensive studies have proved that the exogenous use of glucosamine can relieve osteoarthritis (OA) symptoms and restore articular functions [2][3][4][5]. It also has many antiinfammatory and antioxidative efects with minimal adverse impact on human health [6][7][8][9][10].…”

Serum Metabolomic Alteration in Rats with Osteoarthritis Treated with Palm Tocotrienol-Rich Fraction Alone or in Combination with Glucosamine Sulphate

“…Traditional pharmacological agents for OA, such as intra-articular corticosteroid and hyaluronan injections, as well as oral analgesics, focus on symptomatic relief [6,7]. Glucosamine sulphate, a substrate for the synthesis of proteoglycans, is a commonly used alternative treatment for OA [8]. Numerous meta-analyses have found that glucosamine Life 2023, 13, 2343 2 of 19 sulphate may reduce OA pain while having only minor effects on patients' knee functions [9,10].…”