Normal and shear interactions between hyaluronan-aggrecan complexes mimicking possible boundary lubricants in articular cartilage in synovial joints.

Using a surface force balance, normal and shear interactions have been measured between two atomically smooth surfaces coated with hyaluronan (HA), and with HA/aggrecan (Agg) complexes stabilized by cartilage link protein (LP). Such HA/Agg/LP complexes are the most abundant mobile macromolecular species permeating articular cartilage in synovial joints and have been conjectured to be present as boundary lubricants at its surface. The aim of the present study is to gain insight into the extremely efficient lubrication when two cartilage surfaces slide past each other in healthy joints, and in particular to elucidate the possible role in this of the HA/Agg/LP complexes.

Articular cartilage proteoglycans as boundary lubricants: structure and frictional interaction of surface-attached hyaluronan and hyaluronan--aggrecan complexes.

Mammalian synovial joints are extremely efficient lubrication systems reaching friction coefficient μ as low as 0.001 at high pressures (up to 100 atm) and shear rates (up to 10(6) to 10(7) Hz); however, despite much previous work, the exact mechanism responsible for this behavior is still unknown. In this work, we study the molecular mechanism of synovial joint lubrication by emulating the articular cartilage superficial zone structure.

Mapping the differential distribution of glycosaminoglycans in the adult human retina, choroid, and sclera.

PURPOSE. To map the distribution of different classes of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) in the healthy human retina, choroid, and sclera. METHODS.

Development of a microtiter plate-based glycosaminoglycan array for the investigation of glycosaminoglycan-protein interactions.

The interactions of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) with proteins underlie a wide range of important biological processes. However, the study of such binding reactions has been hampered by the lack of a simple frontline analysis technique. Previously, we have reported that cold plasma polymerization can be used to coat microtiter plate surfaces with allyl amine to which GAGs (e.