Topic:Cartilage
Cartilage in horses is a specialized connective tissue found in joints, providing a smooth, lubricated surface for articulation and facilitating the transmission of loads with low friction. It is composed of chondrocytes embedded within an extracellular matrix rich in collagen fibers, proteoglycans, and water. Cartilage does not contain blood vessels or nerves, relying on diffusion for nutrient delivery and waste removal. This avascularity contributes to its limited capacity for repair and regeneration. Research on equine cartilage focuses on understanding its structure, function, and the biological processes involved in cartilage development, maintenance, and degeneration. Studies also explore the impact of various conditions, such as osteoarthritis, on cartilage integrity and investigate potential therapeutic approaches for cartilage repair and preservation. This page gathers peer-reviewed research and scholarly articles that delve into the biology, pathology, and treatment of cartilage-related conditions in horses.
HOX Gene Expressions in Cultured Articular and Nasal Equine Chondrocytes. Osteoarthritis the quality and span of life in horses. Previous studies focused on nasal cartilage as a possible source for autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI) in cartilage defects in humans. "HOX gene-negative" nasal chondrocytes adapted articular HOX patterns after implantation into caprine joint defects and produced cartilage matrix proteins. We compared the HOX gene profile of equine chondrocytes of nasal septum, anterior and posterior fetlock to identify nasal cartilage as a potential source for ACI in horses. Cartilage was harvested from seven horses after death and derived chondro...
Cartilage Degeneration of the Metacarpal Condyle and Enthesopaties of The Collateral Ligaments of Equine Metacarpophalangeal Joint. Articular degeneration can be characterized by fibrillation and eburnation of the articular layers of the metacarpophalangeal (MP) joint. Structural changes within the articular joint predispose the development of osteophytes, enthesophytes and, in many cases is associated with changes the collateral ligaments of the MP joint. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between degenerative processes of the articular cartilage and the enthesopathies of collateral ligaments (superficial or deep portion) of the equine MP joint, using radiographic, ultrasonographic and anatom...
Effect of intravenous tiludronate disodium administration on the radiographic progression of osteoarthritis of the fetlock joint in Standardbred racehorses. To compare the effects of tiludronate disodium and 3 other medical treatments on clinical and radiographic findings and biomarkers of disease progression in horses with osteoarthritis of the fetlock joint. 100 Standardbred racehorses with spontaneous traumatic injury of the fetlock joint. Horses were retrospectively grouped by whether they received tiludronate IV or triamcinolone acetonide and hyaluronan, polysulfated glycosaminoglycan, or interleukin-1 receptor antagonist protein intra-articularly. Data were collected on clinical, radiographic, and ultrasonographic findings and results for se...
Hyaluronic acid synthesis, degradation, and crosslinking in equine osteoarthritis: TNF-α-TSG-6-mediated HC-HA formation. TNF-α-stimulated gene 6 (TSG-6) protein, a TNF-α-responsive hyaladherin, possesses enzymatic activity that can catalyze covalent crosslinks of the polysaccharide hyaluronic acid (HA) to another protein to form heavy chain-hyaluronic acid (HC-HA) complexes in pathological conditions such as osteoarthritis (OA). Here, we examined HA synthase and inflammatory gene expression; synovial fluid HA, TNF-α, and viscosity; and TSG-6-mediated HC-HA complex formation in an equine OA model. The objectives of this study were to (1) evaluate the TNF-α-TSG-6-HC-HA signaling pathway across multiple joint t...
Systematic Comparison of Biomaterials-Based Strategies for Osteochondral and Chondral Repair in Large Animal Models. Joint repair remains a major challenge in orthopaedics. Recent progress in biomaterial design has led to the fabrication of a plethora of promising devices. Pre-clinical testing of any joint repair strategy typically requires the use of large animal models (e.g., sheep, goat, pig or horse). Despite the key role of such models in clinical translation, there is still a lack of consensus regarding optimal experimental design, making it difficult to draw conclusions on their efficacy. In this context, the authors performed a systematic literature review and a risk of bias assessment on large anima...
Kinetics of Gene Expression Changes in Equine Fetal Interzone and Anlagen Cells Over 14 Days of Induced Chondrogenesis. Within developing synovial joints, interzone and anlagen cells progress through divergent chondrogenic pathways to generate stable articular cartilage and transient hypertrophic anlagen cartilage, respectively. Understanding the comparative cell biology between interzone and anlagen cells may provide novel insights into emergent cell-based therapies to support articular cartilage regeneration. The aim of this study was to assess the kinetics of gene expression profiles in these skeletal cell lines after inducing chondrogenesis in culture. Interzone and anlagen cells from seven equine fetuses w...
Targeting Soluble Epoxide Hydrolase and Cyclooxygenases Enhance Joint Pain Control, Stimulate Collagen Synthesis, and Protect Chondrocytes From Cytokine-Induced Apoptosis. Objective: To determine the symptomatic and disease-modifying capabilities of sEH and COX inhibitors during joint inflammation. Methods: Using a blinded, randomized, crossover experimental design, 6 adult healthy horses were injected with lipopolysaccharide (LPS; 3 μg) from E. coli in a radiocarpal joint and concurrently received the non-selective cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibitor phenylbutazone (2 mg/kg), the sEH inhibitor t-TUCB (1 mg/kg) or both (2 mg/kg phenylbutazone and 0.1, 0.3, and 1 mg/kg t-TUCB) intravenously. There were at least 30 days washout between treatments. Joint pain (assessed...
Chondrogenic potential of mesenchymal stem cells from horses using a magnetic 3D cell culture system. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represent a promising therapy for the treatment of equine joint diseases, studied due to their possible immunomodulatory characteristics and regenerative capacity. However, the source of most suitable MSCs for producing cartilage for regenerative processes in conjunction with biomaterials for an enhanced function is yet to be established. Objective: To compare the chondrogenicity of MSCs derived from synovial fluid, bone marrow, and adipose tissue of horses, using the aggrecan synthesis. Methods: MSCs from ten horses were cultured, phenotypic characterization was ...
Microfracture Augmentation With Trypsin Pretreatment and Growth Factor-Functionalized Self-assembling Peptide Hydrogel Scaffold in an Equine Model. Microfracture augmentation can be a cost-effective single-step alternative to current cartilage repair techniques. Trypsin pretreatment combined with a growth factor-functionalized self-assembling KLD hydrogel ("functionalized hydrogel") has been shown to improve overall cartilage repair and integration to surrounding tissue in small animal models of osteochondral defects. Microfracture combined with trypsin treatment and a functionalized hydrogel will improve reparative tissue quality and integration as compared with microfracture alone in an equine model. Controlled laboratory study. Bilater...
Evaluation of Intra-Articular Amikacin Administration in an Equine Non-inflammatory Joint Model to Identify Effective Bactericidal Concentrations While Minimizing Cytotoxicity. Septic arthritis causes significant morbidity and mortality in veterinary and human clinical practice and is increasingly complicated by multidrug-resistant infections. Intra-articular (IA) antibiotic administration achieves high local drug concentrations but is considered off-label usage, and appropriate doses have not been defined. Using an equine joint model, we investigated the effects of amikacin injected at three different doses (500, 125, and 31.25 mg) on the immune and cartilage responses in tibiotarsal joints. Synovial fluid (SF) was sampled at multiple time points over 24 h, the cell...
Gene expression analysis of subchondral bone, cartilage, and synovium in naturally occurring equine palmar/plantar osteochondral disease. Osteoarthritis (OA) is a disease of the entire joint but the relationship between pathological events in various joint tissues is poorly understood. We examined concurrent changes in bone, cartilage, and synovium in a naturally occurring equine model of joint degeneration. Joints (n = 64) were grossly assessed for palmar/plantar osteochondral disease (POD) in racehorses that required euthanasia for unrelated reasons and assigned a grade of 0 (n = 34), 1 (n = 17), 2 or 3 (n = 13) using a recognized grading scheme. Synovium, cartilage, and subchondral bone were collected for hist...
Recombinant fibroblast growth factor-18 (sprifermin) enhances microfracture-induced cartilage healing. Posttraumatic osteoarthritis is a disabling condition impacting the mostly young and active population. In the present study, we investigated the impact of intra-articular sprifermin, a recombinant truncated fibroblast growth factor 18, on the outcome of microfracture treatment, a widely used surgical technique to enhance cartilage healing at the site of injury. For this study, we created a cartilage defect and performed microfracture treatment in fetlock joints of 18 horses, treated joints with one of three doses of sprifermin (10, 30, or 100 μg) or with saline, hyaluronan, and evaluated a...
Dual-contrast computed tomography enables detection of equine posttraumatic osteoarthritis in vitro. To prevent the progression of posttraumatic osteoarthritis, assessment of cartilage composition is critical for effective treatment planning. Posttraumatic changes include proteoglycan (PG) loss and elevated water content. Quantitative dual-energy computed tomography (QDECT) provides a means to diagnose these changes. Here, we determine the potential of QDECT to evaluate tissue quality surrounding cartilage lesions in an equine model, hypothesizing that QDECT allows detection of posttraumatic degeneration by providing quantitative information on PG and water contents based on the partitions of...
The treatment of articular cartilage injuries with mesenchymal stem cells in different animal species. One of the major problems observed in veterinary practice is articular cartilage injuries in animals. In terms of agriculture, it leads to their culling from the herd, even if they are highly productive animals. With companion animals, owners usually have to decide between euthanasia or long-term sometimes lifelong treatment of the injury by a veterinarian. The use of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for the treatment of cartilage injury in veterinary medicine is based on the good results observed in preclinical studies, where large animals have been used as experimental models to study the regen...
Sprint Exercise of Juvenile Animals Does Not Impact Cartilage Glycosaminoglycan or Synovial Fluid Neopeptide Collagenase Cleavage of Type I and II Collagen Content. Short sprints performed during growth can increase bone strength, mineral density, and cortical widths, but their impact on joint health is not fully understood. Some studies have found joints of young animals are damaged by forced sprints, while others found confinement hindered joint development. This study aimed to determine the impact of short sprints on synovial fluid neopeptide collagenase cleavage of type I and II collagen (C1,2C) and cartilage glycosaminoglycan (GAG) content. Calves were used as a model for young horses in this terminal study. Twenty-four Holstein bull calves were assi...
Structural, compositional, and functional effects of blunt and sharp cartilage damage on the joint: A 9-month equine groove model study. This study aimed to quantify the long-term progression of blunt and sharp cartilage defects and their effect on joint homeostasis and function of the equine carpus. In nine adult Shetland ponies, the cartilage in the radiocarpal and middle carpal joint of one front limb was grooved (blunt or sharp randomized). The ponies were subjected to an 8-week exercise protocol and euthanized at 39 weeks. Structural and compositional alterations in joint tissues were evaluated in vivo using serial radiographs, synovial biopsies, and synovial fluid samples. Joint function was monitored by quantitative gait...
Use of autologous products for the treatment of joint and soft tissue disease in horses: A systematic review. Soft tissue injuries and joint disease are the predominate causes of lameness in the equine athlete and these pathologies carry a guarded prognosis for a return to previous performance. Recently the use of autologous products has become more widespread as a treatment in equine sports medicine. However, the efficacy of these products is yet to be fully established. To evaluate the current published evidence base regarding the efficacy of autologous products in soft tissue injuries and joint disease. A systematic review of English articles using MEDLINE, EMBASE and Web of Science databases from ...
Regenerative Medicine for Equine Musculoskeletal Diseases. Musculoskeletal injuries and chronic degenerative diseases commonly affect both athletic and sedentary horses and can entail the end of their athletic careers. The ensuing repair processes frequently do not yield fully functional regeneration of the injured tissues but biomechanically inferior scar or replacement tissue, causing high reinjury rates, degenerative disease progression and chronic morbidity. Regenerative medicine is an emerging, rapidly evolving branch of translational medicine that aims to replace or regenerate cells, tissues, or organs to restore or establish normal function. It...
Marine Collagen Hydrolysates Downregulate the Synthesis of Pro-Catabolic and Pro-Inflammatory Markers of Osteoarthritis and Favor Collagen Production and Metabolic Activity in Equine Articular Chondrocyte Organoids. Articular cartilage experiences mechanical constraints leading to chondral defects that inevitably evolve into osteoarthritis (OA), because cartilage has poor intrinsic repair capacity. Although OA is an incurable degenerative disease, several dietary supplements may help improve OA outcomes. In this study, we investigated the effects of Dielen® hydrolyzed fish collagens from skin (Promerim®30 and Promerim®60) and cartilage (Promerim®40) to analyze the phenotype and metabolism of equine articular chondrocytes (eACs) cultured as organoids. Here, our findings demonstrated the absence of cyto...
Machine learning augmented near-infrared spectroscopy: In vivo follow-up of cartilage defects. To assess the potential of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) for in vivo arthroscopic monitoring of cartilage defects. Sharp and blunt cartilage grooves were induced in the radiocarpal and intercarpal joints of Shetland ponies and monitored at baseline (0 weeks) and at three follow-up timepoints (11, 23, and 39 weeks) by measuring near-infrared spectra in vivo at and around the grooves. The animals were sacrificed after 39 weeks and the joints were harvested. Spectra were reacquired ex vivo to ensure reliability of in vivo measurements and for reference analyses. Additionally, cartilage thickn...
Low dietary silicon supplementation may not affect bone and cartilage in mature, sedentary horses. As osteoarthritis is a major cause of lameness in horses in the United States, improving collagen health prior to onset and increasing collagen turnover within affected joints could improve health- and welfare-related outcomes. Through its positive effects on bone mineral content and density and its role in increasing collagen synthesis, silicon (Si) may slow the development and progression of osteoarthritis, thereby reducing lameness. This study evaluated the hypothesis that Si supplementation would increase cartilage turnover through increased collagen degradation and formation markers, as w...
Clinical and Pathological Features in Horses With Advanced Arytenoid Chondritis. Equine arytenoid chondritis causes airway obstruction and abnormal upper airway noise due to a space-occupying lesion(s) and decreased abduction. Our objective was to compare clinical scores and ultrasonographic findings with gross and microscopic lesions of naturally occurring arytenoid chondritis, in order to guide surgical treatment. Seventeen naturally affected horses with advanced/severe chronic arytenoid chondritis and 4 control arytenoid cartilages were evaluated after partial arytenoidectomy. Cartilages were sectioned caudal to the corniculate process and the body of each arytenoid was...
Cationic contrast-enhanced computed tomography distinguishes between reparative, degenerative, and healthy equine articular cartilage. Cationic contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT) is a quantitative imaging technique that characterizes articular cartilage, though its efficacy in differentiating repair tissue from other disease states is undetermined. We hypothesized that cationic CECT attenuation will distinguish between reparative, degenerative, and healthy equine articular cartilage and will reflect biochemical, mechanical, and histologic properties. Chondral defects were created in vivo on equine femoropatellar joint surfaces. Within defects, calcified cartilage was retained (Repair 1) or removed (Repair 2). At sac...
Differential Production of Cartilage ECM in 3D Agarose Constructs by Equine Articular Cartilage Progenitor Cells and Mesenchymal Stromal Cells. Identification of articular cartilage progenitor cells (ACPCs) has opened up new opportunities for cartilage repair. These cells may be used as alternatives for or in combination with mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) in cartilage engineering. However, their potential needs to be further investigated, since only a few studies have compared ACPCs and MSCs when cultured in hydrogels. Therefore, in this study, we compared chondrogenic differentiation of equine ACPCs and MSCs in agarose constructs as monocultures and as zonally layered co-cultures under both normoxic and hypoxic conditions. ACPCs a...
Nanoparticles from Equine Fetal Bone Marrow-Derived Cells Enhance the Survival of Injured Chondrocytes. Recent studies have shown that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can play a restorative role against degenerative joint diseases in horses. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether fetal bone marrow-derived cells (BMC)-derived nanoparticles (BMC-NPs) can stimulate the survival of equine chondrocytes. Equine fetal BMCs were isolated and characterized, and the role of BMC-NPs s in equine chondrocytes undergoing inflammatory cell death was examined. BMCs have several characteristics, such as the potential to differentiate into chondrocytes and osteocytes. Additionally, BMCs expressed immu...
Evaluation of a new variant in the aggrecan gene potentially associated with chondrodysplastic dwarfism in Miniature horses. Chondrodysplastic dwarfism in Miniature horses is an autosomal recessive disorder previously associated with four mutations (D1, D2, D3*, and D4) in the aggrecan (ACAN) gene. The aim of this study was to identify additional variants in the candidate ACAN gene associated with chondrodysplastic dwarfism in Miniature horses. Fifteen dwarf Miniature horses were found to possess only one of the dwarfism-causing variants, and two possessed none of the variants. The ACAN exons (EquCab3.0) of seven dwarf Miniature horses were sequenced. A missense SNP in coding exon 11 (g.95271115A > T, c.6465A...
Evaluation of an oral joint supplement on gait kinematics and biomarkers of cartilage metabolism and inflammation in mature riding horses. Twenty stock-type horses (589 ± 126 kg BW; 13 ± 8 yr) were used in a completely randomized design for 28-d to evaluate the impact of a joint supplement on gait kinematics, inflammation, and cartilage metabolism. Horses were stratified by age, sex, body weight (BW), and initial lameness scores and were randomly assigned to one of two dietary treatments consisting of either a 100-g placebo top-dressed daily to 0.6% BW (as-fed) commercial concentrate (CON; n = 10; SafeChoice Original, Cargill, Inc.), or an oral joint supplement (SmartPak Equine LLC) containing glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, ...
Small Non-Coding RNAome of Ageing Chondrocytes. Ageing is a leading risk factor predisposing cartilage to osteoarthritis. However, little research has been conducted on the effect of ageing on the expression of small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs). RNA from young and old chondrocytes from macroscopically normal equine metacarpophalangeal joints was extracted and subjected to small RNA sequencing (RNA-seq). Differential expression analysis was performed in R using package DESeq2. For transfer RNA (tRNA) fragment analysis, tRNA reads were aligned to horse tRNA sequences using Bowtie2 version 2.2.5. Selected microRNA (miRNAs or miRs) and small nucl...
An Exploratory Study into the Implantation of Arytenoid Cartilage Scaffold in the Horse. Respiratory function in the horse can be severely compromised by arytenoid chondritis, or arytenoid chondropathy, a pathologic condition leading to deformity and dysfunction of the affected cartilage. Current treatment in cases unresponsive to medical management is removal of the cartilage, which can improve the airway obstruction, but predisposes the patient to other complications like tracheal penetration of oropharyngeal content and dynamic collapse of the now unsupported soft tissue lateral to the cartilage. A tissue engineering approach to reconstructing the arytenoid cartilage would repr...
Effects of aquatic conditioning on cartilage and bone metabolism in young horses. While beneficial in rehabilitation, aquatic exercise effects on cartilage and bone metabolism in young, healthy horses has not been well described. Therefore, 30 Quarter Horse yearlings (343 ± 28 kg; 496 ± 12 d of age) were stratified by age, body weight (BW), and sex and randomly assigned to 1 of 3 treatments for 140-d to evaluate effects of aquatic, dry, or no exercise on bone and cartilage metabolism in young horses transitioning to an advanced workload. Treatments included nonexercise control (CON; n = 10), dry treadmill (DRY; n = 10), or aquatic treadmill exercise (H2O; n = 10; water: 6...