Novel intracellular signalling regulators of cartilage progenitor cell populations
type: CreativeWork
description: Cartilage is a viscoelastic tissue that absorbs shocks and facilitates low friction of the joint. Adult articular cartilage is limited in its ability to self-repair. Lesions or gradual wear-and-tear affect cartilage integrity and lead to damage that, when untreated, can ultimately develop to osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis is a considerable health burden and is a leading cause of disability worldwide. In order to address this burdensome condition, several treatments have been developed. In particular, therapies that allow delivery of bone marrow and its constituent cell populations to the site of cartilage damage to form a regenerative clot have proved promising in repairing joint cartilage defects. In order to improve such regenerative technique, further research is required to provide a deeper understanding of the mechanisms underlying cartilage regeneration. One of the critical players are the cells that originally reside in the cartilage surrounding the damage. How these resident cells contribute to the activity of cells within the repair tissue at the site of cartilage damage is largely undescribed. In this thesis chondrocytes from three different cartilage areas were compared: chondrocytes from 1) the superficial (SZ) and 2) the middle-deep (MDZ) zone of non-weight bearing femoral condyles, and from 3) the osteoarthritic zone (OAZ) of patients undergoing knee replacement. More inflammatory factors and cytokines are present in MSCs co-culture with OA cartilage chips, and with MDZ cartilage chips. To assess how chondrocyte-MSC crosstalk would affect MSCs chondrogenesis, cartilage chips from the three different zones were co-cultured with BMSC pellets. Results indicated that the SZ induce chondrogenic differentiation of BMSCs, whereas MDZ and OAZ have a negative effect, compared to control conditions. The findings suggest that the presence of SZ, which has been reported to reduce with age, is important to direct BMSCs differentiation towards the chondrogenic fate.…
abstract: Cartilage is a viscoelastic tissue that absorbs shocks and facilitates low friction of the joint. Adult articular cartilage is limited in its ability to self-repair. Lesions or gradual wear-and-tear affect cartilage integrity and lead to damage that, when untreated, can ultimately develop to osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis is a considerable health burden and is a leading cause of disability worldwide. In order to address this burdensome condition, several treatments have been developed. In particular, therapies that allow delivery of bone marrow and its constituent cell populations to the site of cartilage damage to form a regenerative clot have proved promising in repairing joint cartilage defects. In order to improve such regenerative technique, further research is required to provide a deeper understanding of the mechanisms underlying cartilage regeneration. One of the critical players are the cells that originally reside in the cartilage surrounding the damage. How these resident cells contribute to the activity of cells within the repair tissue at the site of cartilage damage is largely undescribed. In this thesis chondrocytes from three different cartilage areas were compared: chondrocytes from 1) the superficial (SZ) and 2) the middle-deep (MDZ) zone of non-weight bearing femoral condyles, and from 3) the osteoarthritic zone (OAZ) of patients undergoing knee replacement. More inflammatory factors and cytokines are present in MSCs co-culture with OA cartilage chips, and with MDZ cartilage chips. To assess how chondrocyte-MSC crosstalk would affect MSCs chondrogenesis, cartilage chips from the three different zones were co-cultured with BMSC pellets. Results indicated that the SZ induce chondrogenic differentiation of BMSCs, whereas MDZ and OAZ have a negative effect, compared to control conditions. The findings suggest that the presence of SZ, which has been reported to reduce with age, is important to direct BMSCs differentiation towards the chondrogenic fate.…
author: Albiero, Anna
language: eng
keywords: cartilage, cell biology, DACT1, mesenchymal stromal cell, regenerative medicine, osteoarthritis, Extracellular vesicles
license: https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/4f31164f-7193-4cfe-b1b5-063b57f3d4de/download
license: https://www.rioxx.net/licenses/all-rights-reserved/
date published: 2020-07-17
date modified: 2026-07-22T22:24:03Z
provider: Cambridge University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Cambridge

PropertyValue
property ID: DOI
value: 10.17863/CAM.54853