title: Effect of a solution of hyaluronic acid-chondroitin sulfate-N-acetyl glucosamine on the repair response of cartilage to single-impact load damage.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate effects of 1% hyaluronic acid-chondroitin sulfate-N-acetyl glucosamine (HCNAG) on the damage repair response in equine articular cartilage.
  
  
  METHODS
  Articular cartilage from 9 clinically normal adult horses.
  
  
  METHODS
  Full-thickness cartilage disks were harvested from the third metacarpal bone. Cartilage was single-impact loaded (SIL) with 0.175 J at 0.7 m/s and cultured in DMEM plus 1 % (vol/vol) HCNAG or fibroblastic growth factor (FGF)-2 (50 ng/mL). Histologic and immunohistochemical techniques were used to identify tissue architecture and apoptotic cells and to immunolocalize type I and II collagen and proliferating nuclear cell antigen (PCNA).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Type II collagen immunoreactivity increased in SIL cartilage, compared with control samples. At days 14 and 28 (day 0 = initiation of culture), control samples had significantly fewer repair cells than did other treatment groups. In control samples and SIL + HCNAG, there was a significant decrease in apoptotic cell number, compared with results for SIL and SIL + FGF-2 samples. At days 14 and 28, there was a significant increase in chondrocytes stained positive for PCNA in the control samples.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  1% HCNAG significantly affected apoptotic and repair cell numbers in an SIL damage-repair technique in adult equine articular cartilage. However, HCNAG had no effect on the number of PCNA-positive chondrocytes or on type II collagen immunohistochemical results. The inclusion of 1% HCNAG in lavage solutions administered after arthroscopy may be beneficial to cartilage health by increasing the number of repair cells and decreasing the number of apoptotic cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Cambridge, England, UK. fmdh1@cam.ac.uk
authors.forename: Frances M D
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Henson
authors.forename: Alan M J
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Getgood
authors.forename: David M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Caborn
authors.forename: C Wayne
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: McIlwraith
authors.forename: Neil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rushton
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D002358:Cartilage, Articular / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects*; D002809:Chondroitin Sulfates / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005944:Glucosamine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006736:Horses; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology*; D046509:Tissue Culture Techniques
chemical_list: D006820:Hyaluronic Acid; D002809:Chondroitin Sulfates; D005944:Glucosamine