Comparison of Antigen Retrieval Methods for Immunohistochemical Analysis of Cartilage Matrix Glycoproteins Using Cartilage Intermediate Layer Protein 2 (CILP-2) as an Example.

The aim of this study was to compare different antigen retrieval methods to improve the outcome of immunohistochemistry (IHC) performed on osteoarthritic (OA) cartilage obtained from total knee replacement operation. A voluminous and dense extracellular matrix of articular cartilage inhibits antibody penetration, and therefore, proteins present at low concentrations and masked during fixation may need antigen retrieval to enhance an IHC outcome. We focused on the IHC detection of a minor but diagnostically promising cartilage glycoprotein, CILP-2 (cartilage intermediate layer protein 2), to demonstrate the effect of four different protocols: (1) heat-induced epitope retrieval (HIER), (2) proteolytic-induced epitope retrieval applying proteinase K and hyaluronidase (PIER), (3) HIER combined with PIER, and (4) no antigen retrieval (control).

Cartilage Collagen Neoepitope C2C Expression in the Articular Cartilage and Its Relation to Joint Tissue Damage in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis.

Pathological cleavage of type II collagen (Col2) and generation of Col2 neoepitopes can serve as useful molecular markers of the progression of osteoarthritis (OA). One of such potential biomarkers is type II collagen neoepitope C2C. The aim of this study was to correlate the degree of articular cartilage damage in OA patients with C2C expression in histological samples of tissues removed during total knee replacement.

Expression of CILP-2 and DDR2 and ultrastructural changes in the articular cartilage of patients with knee osteoarthritis undergoing total knee arthroplasty: a pilot morphological study.

The aim of the study was to correlate the immunohistochemical expression of cartilage intermediate layer protein 2 (CILP-2) and discoidin domain receptor 2 (DDR2), and the ultrastructural changes in the cartilage with the degree of articular cartilage damage in osteoarthritis (OA) patients. Cartilage samples were obtained from twenty patients aged from 46 to 68 years undergoing total knee arthroplasty. In each patient, medial and lateral tibial plateau samples were analysed applying OARSI histopathology grading.

Mast Cells Differentiated in Synovial Fluid and Resident in Osteophytes Exalt the Inflammatory Pathology of Osteoarthritis.

Introduction: Osteophytes are a prominent feature of osteoarthritis (OA) joints and one of the clinical hallmarks of the disease progression. Research on osteophytes is fragmentary and modes of its contribution to OA pathology are obscure.

Aim: To elucidate the role of osteophytes in OA pathology from a perspective of molecular and cellular events.

Expression of LHCG receptors in the human penis.

The aim of this study is to investigate the expression of the luteinizing hormone/choriogonadotropin (LHCG) receptor in the human penis to see, if the luteinizing hormone (LH) effects are possible in the spongious and cavernous tissue of the penis. The number of men with erection disturbances increases significantly simultaneously with the elevated LH concentrations between 40 and 70 years. It is possible that the elevated LH concentrations may influence locally the erectile mechanisms.

Evaluation of correlation of articular cartilage staining for DDR2 and proteoglycans with histological tissue damage and the results of radiographic assessment in patients with early stages of knee osteoarthritis.

Objective: To determine, if staining of articular cartilage for proteoglycans (natural element of healthy and functioning cartilage) and discoidin domain receptor 2 (DDR2) (a protein associated with articular cartilage degradation) is correlated with histological tissue damage or radiographic assessment score in patients with early stages of knee osteoarthritis (OA).

Method: 40 patients, with early stage OA were enrolled, from whom the biopsies for histological and immunohistochemical studies were obtained from edge of the femoral condyle during the arthroscopy. Semi-quantitative computer based analysis was used to evaluate the proportion of staining in histological sections.

Expression of class II cytokine genes in children's skin.

Immune regulation of the skin plays an important role in susceptibility and development of illnesses. The aim of our study was to localise the interleukin (IL)-10 family of cytokines, in children's skin and to determine possible age-related differences in the expression level. The mRNA expression level of IL10, IL19, IL20, IL22, IL24, IL26, IL28B, IL29 and their receptors IL10RA, IL10RB, IL20RA, IL20RB, IL22RA1, IL22RA2, IL28RA was compared in skin biopsies of children and adults and in childrens' skin cells by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR).

The ADAM12 is upregulated in synovitis and postinflammatory fibrosis of the synovial membrane in patients with early radiographic osteoarthritis.

Objective: To investigate the possible association between ADAM12 (disintegrin and metalloproteinase domain12) expression in the synovium and the histological synovitis of patients with radiographic knee osteoarthritis (rKOA).

Methods: The synovial biopsy samples were harvested from 44 subjects with chronic knee complaints during arthroscopy. In all subjects, the radiographs of both knee joints were performed for rKOA assessment.

Lack of a central role for osteoprogenitor cells from the femoral canal in heterotopic ossification of the hip: an experimental study in a rat model.

We have developed an animal model to examine the formation of heterotopic ossification using standardised muscular damage and implantation of a beta-tricalcium phosphate block into a hip capsulotomy wound in Wistar rats. The aim was to investigate how cells originating from drilled femoral canals and damaged muscles influence the formation of heterotopic bone. The femoral canal was either drilled or left untouched and a tricalcium phosphate block, immersed either in saline or a rhBMP-2 solution, was implanted.

Bone tissue content of TGF-beta2 changes with time in human heterotopic ossification after total hip arthroplasty.

Transforming growth factor beta isoforms (TGF-beta(1), TGF-beta(2), and TGF-beta(3)) most likely play a role in bone physiology, but little is known about their relative importance in normal as well as in heterotopic bone. This study focused on possible differences in the localization and relative content of different TGF beta isoforms in heterotopic ossifications (HO) by comparing HOs, which have developed less than 17 months (immature HOs) with those developed 3-9 years (mature HOs). The HOs were harvested after total hip arthroplasty (THA) during revision surgery.

Bone formation zones in heterotopic ossifications: histologic findings and increased expression of bone morphogenetic protein 2 and transforming growth factors beta2 and beta3.

Heterotopic ossifications (HOs) formed after total endoprosthetic replacement of the hip joint were collected during revision surgery (n = 7). Tissues collected during regular hip arthroplasty (n = 12) were used as reference. Histomorphometric analysis was performed for assessment of bone formation activity in HOs and reference bone.