Paediatrics (RCH) - Research Publications

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    Transparency Is the Key to Quality
    Fosang, AJ ; Colbran, RJ (AMER SOC BIOCHEMISTRY MOLECULAR BIOLOGY INC, 2015-12-11)
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    High-bandwidth AFM-based rheology is a sensitive indicator of early cartilage aggrecan degradation relevant to mouse models of osteoarthritis
    Nia, HT ; Gauci, SJ ; Azadi, M ; Hung, H-H ; Frank, E ; Fosang, AJ ; Ortiz, C ; Grodzinsky, AJ (ELSEVIER SCI LTD, 2015-01-02)
    Murine models of osteoarthritis (OA) and post-traumatic OA have been widely used to study the development and progression of these diseases using genetically engineered mouse strains along with surgical or biochemical interventions. However, due to the small size and thickness of murine cartilage, the relationship between mechanical properties, molecular structure and cartilage composition has not been well studied. We adapted a recently developed AFM-based nano-rheology system to probe the dynamic nanomechanical properties of murine cartilage over a wide frequency range of 1 Hz to 10 kHz, and studied the role of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) on the dynamic modulus and poroelastic properties of murine femoral cartilage. We showed that poroelastic properties, highlighting fluid-solid interactions, are more sensitive indicators of loss of mechanical function compared to equilibrium properties in which fluid flow is negligible. These fluid-flow-dependent properties include the hydraulic permeability (an indicator of the resistance of matrix to fluid flow) and the high frequency modulus, obtained at high rates of loading relevant to jumping and impact injury in vivo. Utilizing a fibril-reinforced finite element model, we estimated the poroelastic properties of mouse cartilage over a wide range of loading rates for the first time, and show that the hydraulic permeability increased by a factor ~16 from knormal=7.80×10(-16)±1.3×10(-16) m(4)/N s to kGAG-depleted=1.26×10(-14)±6.73×10(-15) m(4)/N s after GAG depletion. The high-frequency modulus, which is related to fluid pressurization and the fibrillar network, decreased significantly after GAG depletion. In contrast, the equilibrium modulus, which is fluid-flow independent, did not show a statistically significant alteration following GAG depletion.
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    Bioactivity in an Aggrecan 32-mer Fragment Is Mediated via Toll-like Receptor 2
    Lees, S ; Golub, SB ; Last, K ; Zeng, W ; Jackson, DC ; Sutton, P ; Fosang, AJ (WILEY, 2015-05)
    OBJECTIVE: To determine whether an aggrecan 32-mer fragment derived from dual ADAMTS and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) cleavage in the aggrecan interglobular domain was bioactive and, if so, to elucidate its mechanism of action. METHODS: Mouse primary chondrocytes, synovial fibroblasts, or peritoneal macrophages, human primary chondrocytes, and cells or cell lines from myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88)-deficient and Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR-2)-deficient mice were stimulated with synthetic mouse 32-mer peptide, human 32-mer peptide, a 32-mer scrambled peptide, or native, glycosylated 32-mer peptide. Cells stimulated with 32-mer peptide were analyzed for changes in messenger RNA (mRNA) expression by quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Conditioned medium was analyzed for levels of interleukin-6 protein by an AlphaLISA or for levels of MMP-3 and MMP-13 protein by Western blotting. NF-κB activation was measured in a luciferase reporter assay. RESULTS: Treatment of mouse cells or cartilage explants with 32-mer peptide or scrambled peptide revealed that the 32-mer peptide, but not the scrambled peptide, had antianabolic, procatabolic, and proinflammatory bioactivity in vitro. Chondrocytes, synovial fibroblasts, and macrophages from MyD88-deficient mice failed to respond to 32-mer peptide stimulation. A macrophage cell line derived from TLR-2-deficient mice also failed to respond to 32-mer peptide stimulation. Stimulation of human chondrocytes with human 32-mer peptide increased the expression of catabolic markers at the mRNA and protein levels. Mouse and human 32-mer peptide stimulated NF-κB activation in a TLR-2-dependent reporter assay, and the response of chondrocytes from both species to native, glycosylated 32-mer peptide was similar to the response to synthetic peptides. CONCLUSION: The aggrecan 32-mer fragment is a novel endogenous ligand of TLR-2 with the potential to accelerate cartilage destruction in vivo.
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    3D bioprinting of cartilage for orthopedic surgeons: reading between the lines
    Di Bella, C ; Fosang, A ; Donati, DM ; Wallace, GG ; Choong, PFM (FRONTIERS MEDIA SA, 2015)
    Chondral and osteochondral lesions represent one of the most challenging and frustrating scenarios for the orthopedic surgeon and for the patient. The lack of therapeutic strategies capable to reconstitute the function and structure of hyaline cartilage and to halt the progression toward osteoarthritis has brought clinicians and scientists together, to investigate the potential role of tissue engineering as a viable alternative to current treatment modalities. In particular, the role of bioprinting is emerging as an innovative technology that allows for the creation of organized 3D tissue constructs via a "layer-by-layer" deposition process. This process also has the capability to combine cells and biomaterials in an ordered and predetermined way. Here, we review the recent advances in cartilage bioprinting and we identify the current challenges and the directions for future developments in cartilage regeneration.