Daily low-intensity pulsed ultrasound stimulation mitigates joint degradation and pain in a post-traumatic osteoarthritis rat model
Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: Objectives: . Methods: Thirty-eight male, four-month-old Sprague Dawley rats were randomly assigned to Sham, Sham + US, OA, and OA + US. Sham surgery was performed to serve as a negative control, and anterior cruciate ligament transection was used to induce OA. Three days after the surgical procedures, Sham + US and OA + US animals received daily LIPUS treatment, while the rest of the groups received sham ultrasound (US) signals. Behavioral pain tests were performed at baseline and every week thereafter. After 31 days, the tissues were collected, and histological analyses were performed on knees and innervated dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons traced by retrograde labeling. Furthermore, to assess the activation of osteoclasts by LIPUS treatment, RAW264.7 cells were differentiated into osteoclasts and treated with LIPUS. Results: , which was confirmed via histological analyses and mRNA expression. Finally, lower expression of netrin-1, a sensory innervation-related protein, was found in the LIPUS treated cells. Conclusion: Our findings demonstrate that early intervention using LIPUS treatment has protective effects from the progression of knee OA, including reduced tissue degradation, mitigated pain characteristics, improved subchondral bone microarchitecture, and less sensory innervation. Furthermore, daily LIPUS treatment has a suppressive effect on osteoclastogenesis, which may be linked to the suppression of sensory innervation in OA. The translational potential of this article: This study presents a new potential for early intervention in treating OA symptoms through the use of LIPUS, which involves the suppression of osteoclastogenesis and the alteration of DRG profiles. This intervention aims to delay joint degradation and reduce pain.
Institution: Stony Brook University
Language: English
Subfield: Rheumatology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,000
OpenAlex ID: W4390034252