title: Effects of intra-articular administration of glucosamine and a peptidyl-glucosamine derivative in a rabbit model of experimental osteoarthritis: a pilot study.
abstract: The aim of this pilot study was to analyze the effects of glucosamine (GlcN) and its N-acetyl-phenylalanine derivative (NAPA) in Vitamin A model of osteoarthritis (OA) in rabbits. GlcN or NAPA or saline solution was intra-articularly administered in rabbit OA knees. Histological analysis revealed that treatment with GlcN or NAPA was associated with more homogeneous chondrocyte cellularity, absence of fissures and fragmentation and more intense staining of the matrix with Alcian Blue compared to the articular surfaces of the knees treated with saline solution. Comparative in vitro study performed on rabbit primary chondrocytes revealed that GlcN and NAPA were also able to counteract the IL-1beta-upregulation of genes coding for metalloproteases and inflammatory cytokines. Our preliminary in vivo and in vitro studies suggest that GlcN and NAPA could play a disease-modifying protective role in OA by an anti-catabolic effect and an anti-inflammatory activity on chondrocytes.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche, Sapienza Università di Roma, P.le Aldo Moro, 5, 00185 Rome, Italy. anna.scottodabusco@uniroma1.it
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Scotto d'Abusco
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Corsi
authors.forename: Maria Grazia
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Grillo
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cicione
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Calamia
authors.forename: Gianluca
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Panzini
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sansone
authors.forename: Cesare
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Giordano
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Politi
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Scandurra
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D019902:Chondrocytes / Q000187:drug effects*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005944:Glucosamine / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D007270:Injections, Intra-Articular; D008297:Male; D020370:Osteoarthritis, Knee / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011817:Rabbits
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D016207:Cytokines; D005944:Glucosamine