title: Overexpression of synoviolin facilitates the formation of a functional synovial biomembrane.
abstract: Digital flexor tendon repair poses a significant challenge for hand surgeons. Currently, extrasynovial tendon grafts are frequently used in clinical settings to bridge flexor tendon defects. However, the healing process is always accompanied by postoperative adhesion. This is mostly due to the fact that no synovial membrane covers the extrasynovial tendon surface, in contrast to the intrasynovial tendon. In this study, we present an efficient method of developing a functional synovial biomembrane on the surface of the extrasynovial tendon. Synoviocytes were isolated from the knee joint of a Japanese white rabbit. After being infected with lentivirus, the over-expression of synoviolin in these synoviocytes was confirmed by semi-quantitative RT-PCR and western blotting. Cellular proliferation and increased hyaluronic acid secretion were confirmed in the synoviolin over-expressing synoviocytes by MTT-based method, cell cycle assays and ELISA. Furthermore, the synoviolin over-expressing synoviocytes were co-cultured with extrasynovial tendons that were harvested from the hind leg of rabbits. After being co-cultured in vitro for 3 and 7 days, these infected synoviocytes were found to accelerate the formation of a biomembrane on the tendon surface compared to the control group. More importantly, Alcian blue staining confirmed the ability of this cultured biomembrane to produce specific matrices containing acidic carboxyl mucopolysaccharides (mainly hyaluronic acid). All these results demonstrate that the over-expression of synoviolin stimulates the proliferation and HA secretion of synoviocytes and facilitates the formation of a functional synovial biomembrane.
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Analysis Center, Basic Medical Sciences, Third Military Medical University of Chinese PLA, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Shao-Xiang
authors.initials: SX
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Zhong-Fen
authors.initials: ZF
authors.lastname: Tao
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xiong
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Ju
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: Zheng-Zhi
authors.initials: ZZ
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002462:Cell Membrane; D018920:Coculture Techniques; D017931:DNA Primers; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D016086:Lentivirus / Q000235:genetics; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D011817:Rabbits; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013583:Synovial Membrane / Q000378:metabolism; D013710:Tendons / Q000601:surgery; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 / Q000378:metabolism; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D054875:Ubiquitination
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases