Mechanical Properties Of Chondrocytes From Normal And Osteoarthritic Rabbit Knee Cartilage

Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common diseases of the elderly, with a large impact on their quality of life. The mechanical properties and volume regulation capabilities of chondrocytes in articular cartilage is an important factor affecting the health of the diarthrodial joint, which are believed to play an important role in their response to mechanical loading of the extracellular matrix. In addition, they influence cartilage homeostasis, even are significant factors in the initiation and progression of joint degeneration (as in OA).In the present work, The animal model of OA was induced by anterior cruciate ligament transaction (ACLT) in animals of experiment group, and the same processes of operation was performed on ones of control group, but no ACLT. Rabbits were sacrificed and evaluated at two levels: macroscopic and histological (HE) in all left knees. Micropipette aspiration technique was adopted to investigate the elastic, viscoelastic properties and volume regulation capabilities of normal and OA chondrocytes. The main conclusion can be drawn as follows:...