Published in:
01-02-2005 | Oral presentation
Mechanisms of cartilage matrix turnover: synergistic interactions of proinflammatory cytokines with oncostatin M in upregulating matrix metalloproteinases and ADAMTS metalloproteinases
Authors:
TE Cawston, H Bigg, J Milner, J Catterall, T Morgan, E Barksby, W Hui, A Rowan
Published in:
Arthritis Research & Therapy
|
Special Issue 1/2005
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Excerpt
Cartilage is a highly organised tissue where the arrangement of collagen and proteoglycan and minor components is carefully controlled. The chondrocytes maintain a precise balance between anabolic and catabolic processes that maintains this extracellular matrix. Proteoglycan removal is rapid and reversible while collagen removal is slower but, once removed, is difficult to replace. Our main research focus is to discover the mechanism of collagen turnover and we study the members of the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) family that specifically cleave type II collagen to give characteristic one-quarter and three-quarter fragments; MMP-1, MMP-8, MMP-13 and also MMP-2 and MMP-14 cleave in this way. …