Articular cartilage is a connective tissue structure that is found in anatomical areas that are important for the movement of the human body. Osteoarthritis is the ailment that most often affects... Show moreArticular cartilage is a connective tissue structure that is found in anatomical areas that are important for the movement of the human body. Osteoarthritis is the ailment that most often affects the articular cartilage. Due to its poor intrinsic healing capacity, damage to the articular cartilage is highly detrimental and at present the reconstructive options for its repair are limited. Tissue engineering and the science of nanobiomaterials are two lines of research that together can contribute to the restoration of damaged tissue. The science of nanobiomaterials focuses on the development of different nanoscale structures that can be used as carriers of drugs / cells to treat and repair damaged tissues such as articular cartilage. This review article is an overview of the composition of articular cartilage, the causes and treatments of osteoarthritis, with a special emphasis on nanomaterials as carriers of drugs and cells, which reduce inflammation, promote the activation of biochemical factors and ultimately contribute to the total restoration of articular cartilage. Show less
Articular cartilage is a connective tissue structure that is found in anatomical areas that are important for the movement of the human body. Osteoarthritis is the ailment that most often affects... Show moreArticular cartilage is a connective tissue structure that is found in anatomical areas that are important for the movement of the human body. Osteoarthritis is the ailment that most often affects the articular cartilage. Due to its poor intrinsic healing capacity, damage to the articular cartilage is highly detrimental and at present the reconstructive options for its repair are limited. Tissue engineering and the science of nanobiomaterials are two lines of research that together can contribute to the restoration of damaged tissue. The science of nanobiomaterials focuses on the development of different nanoscale structures that can be used as carriers of drugs / cells to treat and repair damaged tissues such as articular cartilage. This review article is an overview of the composition of articular cartilage, the causes and treatments of osteoarthritis, with a special emphasis on nanomaterials as carriers of drugs and cells, which reduce inflammation, promote the activation of biochemical factors and ultimately contribute to the total restoration of articular cartilage. Show less
Treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is rarely personalized, since predictors of disease course are lacking. The severity of RA can be measured objectively by radiographic... Show moreTreatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is rarely personalized, since predictors of disease course are lacking. The severity of RA can be measured objectively by radiographic progression. The most reliable way to measure radiographic progression is in a longitudinal cohort with serial time points, scoring on a quantitative scale, with a validated scoring method and trained readers. Current models used to predict radiographic progression are based on C-reactive protein and anti-citrullinated protein antibodies. Other biomarkers could increase the prognostic ability of these models. In this review, we evaluated the published (and partly nonpublished) data on genetic, serologic, and imaging biomarkers for the severity of joint destruction in RA. We evaluated variants in 10 genes (CD40, IL2RA, IL4R, IL15, OPG, DKK1, SOST, GRZB, MMP9, and SPAG16). In 5 variants (IL2RA, DKK1, GRZB, MMP9, and SPAG16), we found evidence of an association at the functional level. We evaluated several serological biomarkers, namely, autoantibodies (RF, ACPA, anti-CarP), markers related to inflammation (ESR, CRP), and proteinases or components of the extracellular matrix of bone and cartilage (MMP3, CTX-I, CTX-II, COMP, TIMP1, PYD, RANKL/OPG, CXCL13). Finally, we evaluated markers that can be visualized by ultrasound or MRI, including erosions, bone marrow edema, synovitis, and tenosynovitis. Several studies showed that bone marrow edema and synovitis on MRI are robust predictors of radiographic progression. Some studies showed that inflammation detected with ultrasound predicted radiographic progression. Future studies will reveal whether adding and combining all these different biomarkers will increase the accuracy of risk models predicting radiographic progression in RA. Show less
Adult organ regeneration occurs in many systems such as in liver, skin, intestine and heart, indicating that postnatal life is not a static or quiescent state but a dynamic and complex process. The... Show moreAdult organ regeneration occurs in many systems such as in liver, skin, intestine and heart, indicating that postnatal life is not a static or quiescent state but a dynamic and complex process. The liver is a spectacular organ, exhibiting high regenerative capacity crucial for homeostasis and tissue repair: injuries induced mechanically or chemically, can be completely restored. Regeneration involves extensive cell division, inflammation and extracellular matrix remodeling processes. At the molecular level, one of the key mediators of regeneration response is the secreted cytokine transforming growth factor-β (TGFβ). TGFβ is a profibrogenic and anti-proliferative protein with pleiotropic functions depending on the cellular context. In this review, we discuss the role of TGFβ in the development of the liver and in adult liver regeneration, with particular emphasis on its role in regulation of hepatocyte regeneration and in hepatic progenitor cell-induced regeneration. Finally, we give an overview of the current direction of liver research towards cell replacement therapies. Show less
Karkampouna, S.; Dijke, P. ten; Dooley, S.; Kruithof-de Julio, M. 2012
