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Injury-related cell death and proteoglycan loss in articular cartilage : Numerical model combining necrosis, reactive oxygen species, and inflammatory cytokines

Kosonen, Joonas P. ; Eskelinen, Atte S.A. ; Orozco, Gustavo A. LU ; Nieminen, Petteri ; Anderson, Donald D. ; Grodzinsky, Alan J. ; Korhonen, Rami K. and Tanska, Petri (2023) In PLoS Computational Biology 19(1).
Abstract

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common musculoskeletal disease that leads to deterioration of articular cartilage, joint pain, and decreased quality of life. When OA develops after a joint injury, it is designated as post-traumatic OA (PTOA). The etiology of PTOA remains poorly understood, but it is known that proteoglycan (PG) loss, cell dysfunction, and cell death in cartilage are among the first signs of the disease. These processes, influenced by biomechanical and inflammatory stimuli, disturb the normal cell-regulated balance between tissue synthesis and degeneration. Previous computational mechanobiological models have not explicitly incorporated the cell-mediated degradation mechanisms triggered by an injury that eventually can lead to... (More)

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common musculoskeletal disease that leads to deterioration of articular cartilage, joint pain, and decreased quality of life. When OA develops after a joint injury, it is designated as post-traumatic OA (PTOA). The etiology of PTOA remains poorly understood, but it is known that proteoglycan (PG) loss, cell dysfunction, and cell death in cartilage are among the first signs of the disease. These processes, influenced by biomechanical and inflammatory stimuli, disturb the normal cell-regulated balance between tissue synthesis and degeneration. Previous computational mechanobiological models have not explicitly incorporated the cell-mediated degradation mechanisms triggered by an injury that eventually can lead to tissue-level compositional changes. Here, we developed a 2-D mechanobiological finite element model to predict necrosis, apoptosis following excessive production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and inflammatory cytokine (interleukin-1)-driven apoptosis in cartilage explant. The resulting PG loss over 30 days was simulated. Biomechanically triggered PG degeneration, associated with cell necrosis, excessive ROS production, and cell apoptosis, was predicted to be localized near a lesion, while interleukin-1 diffusion-driven PG degeneration was manifested more globally. Interestingly, the model also showed proteolytic activity and PG biosynthesis closer to the levels of healthy tissue when pro-inflammatory cytokines were rapidly inhibited or cleared from the culture medium, leading to partial recovery of PG content. The numerical predictions of cell death and PG loss were supported by previous experimental findings. Furthermore, the simulated ROS and inflammation mechanisms had longer-lasting effects (over 3 days) on the PG content than localized necrosis. The mechanobiological model presented here may serve as a numerical tool for assessing early cartilage degeneration mechanisms and the efficacy of interventions to mitigate PTOA progression.

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organization
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type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
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in
PLoS Computational Biology
volume
19
issue
1
article number
e1010337
publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
external identifiers
  • scopus:85147029780
  • pmid:36701279
ISSN
1553-734X
DOI
10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010337
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
08e36d77-72c6-4259-a020-7064b6ed75ec
date added to LUP
2023-02-13 12:01:29
date last changed
2024-06-13 23:35:34
@article{08e36d77-72c6-4259-a020-7064b6ed75ec,
  abstract     = {{<p>Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common musculoskeletal disease that leads to deterioration of articular cartilage, joint pain, and decreased quality of life. When OA develops after a joint injury, it is designated as post-traumatic OA (PTOA). The etiology of PTOA remains poorly understood, but it is known that proteoglycan (PG) loss, cell dysfunction, and cell death in cartilage are among the first signs of the disease. These processes, influenced by biomechanical and inflammatory stimuli, disturb the normal cell-regulated balance between tissue synthesis and degeneration. Previous computational mechanobiological models have not explicitly incorporated the cell-mediated degradation mechanisms triggered by an injury that eventually can lead to tissue-level compositional changes. Here, we developed a 2-D mechanobiological finite element model to predict necrosis, apoptosis following excessive production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and inflammatory cytokine (interleukin-1)-driven apoptosis in cartilage explant. The resulting PG loss over 30 days was simulated. Biomechanically triggered PG degeneration, associated with cell necrosis, excessive ROS production, and cell apoptosis, was predicted to be localized near a lesion, while interleukin-1 diffusion-driven PG degeneration was manifested more globally. Interestingly, the model also showed proteolytic activity and PG biosynthesis closer to the levels of healthy tissue when pro-inflammatory cytokines were rapidly inhibited or cleared from the culture medium, leading to partial recovery of PG content. The numerical predictions of cell death and PG loss were supported by previous experimental findings. Furthermore, the simulated ROS and inflammation mechanisms had longer-lasting effects (over 3 days) on the PG content than localized necrosis. The mechanobiological model presented here may serve as a numerical tool for assessing early cartilage degeneration mechanisms and the efficacy of interventions to mitigate PTOA progression.</p>}},
  author       = {{Kosonen, Joonas P. and Eskelinen, Atte S.A. and Orozco, Gustavo A. and Nieminen, Petteri and Anderson, Donald D. and Grodzinsky, Alan J. and Korhonen, Rami K. and Tanska, Petri}},
  issn         = {{1553-734X}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  publisher    = {{Public Library of Science (PLoS)}},
  series       = {{PLoS Computational Biology}},
  title        = {{Injury-related cell death and proteoglycan loss in articular cartilage : Numerical model combining necrosis, reactive oxygen species, and inflammatory cytokines}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010337}},
  doi          = {{10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010337}},
  volume       = {{19}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}