Francesca M. Trovato

New perspectives for articular cartilage repair treatment through tissue engineering: A contemporary review

In this paper review we describe benefits and disadvantages of the established methods of cartilage regeneration that seem to have a better long-term effectiveness. We illustrated the anatomical aspect of the knee joint cartilage, the current state of cartilage tissue engineering, through mesenchymal stem cells and biomaterials, and in conclusion we provide a short overview on the rehabilitation after articular cartilage repair procedures. Adult articular cartilage has low capacity to repair itself, and thus even minor injuries may lead to progressive damage and osteoarthritic joint degeneration, resulting in significant pain and disability. Numerous efforts have been made to develop tissue-engineered grafts or patches to repair focal chondral and osteochondral defects, and to date several researchers aim to implement clinical application of cell-based therapies for cartilage repair. A literature review was conducted on PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar using appropriate keywords, examining the current literature on the well-known tissue engineering methods for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis.

Human obesity relationship with Ad36 adenovirus and insulin resistance.

Objectives:Infection with specific pathogens may lead to increased adiposity: a specific adiposity-promoting effect of Ad36 human adenovirus, without the involvement of neurological mechanisms, was reported. The aim of this study is to investigate whether non-diabetic patients with earlier Ad36 infection show greater degrees of overweight obesity, of Insulin Resistance (IR), assessed by homoeostasis-model assessment (HOMA), and/or of other related factors. Moreover, the relationship, if any, among these factors and an earlier Ad36 infection, and the hypothesis of a mechanism involving IR are investigated.Subjects:Ad36 seropositivity is assessed in 68 obese and 135 non-obese subjects, along with body composition, HOMA and laboratory investigations.Results:Age, body mass index (BMI), waist–hip ratio, blood pressure, insulin, HOMA and triglycerides are significantly greater in the Ad36 seropositive group. Ad36 seropositivity, along with HOMA and total cholesterol, explains BMI variance. No Ad36 seropositivity effect to HOMA could be envisaged by the same statistical model.Conclusion:A significant association of Ad36 seropositivity with obesity and with essential hypertension in human beings is suggested by our study; this association is mostly significant in women. Our results do not support that any Ad36 adipogenic adenovirus effect is operating in human obesity through an insulin-resistance-related mechanism. Ad36 seropositive status could also be a hallmark of a clinical-metabolic profile possibly preceding obesity and diabetes in non-obese patients.

Protective Role of Coffee in Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)

AimThe benefits of coffee on abnormal liver biochemistry, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma have been reported, but there is a lack of satisfactory explanation. Thus, this study aims to investigate if coffee use has any relationship with bright liver, measured by ultrasound bright liver score (BLS), in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and which relationship, if any, is present with BMI and insulin resistance.MethodsThis study was performed on 245 patients, 137 with NAFLD and 108 controls. Coffee drinking was defined according to the absolute number of cups of coffee (only espresso coffee), and also graded as 1 (0 cups of coffee/day), 2 (1–2 cups of coffee/day) 3 (≥3 cups of coffee/day). Insulin resistance was assessed by homoeostasis model-insulin resistance index (HOMA).ResultsLess fatty liver involvement is present in coffee vs. non-coffee drinkers. Odds ratios show that obesity, higher insulin resistance, lower HDL cholesterol, older age and arterial hypertension are associated with a greater risk of more severe BLS; to the contrary, coffee drinking is associated with less severe BLS. In the multiple logistic regression (MLR) model, number of cups of coffee, HOMA and BMI account for 35.8% of the variance to BLS. Coffee use is inversely associated with the degree of bright liver, along with insulin resistance and obesity, which, to the contrary, are directly associated with greater likelihood and severity of bright liver appearance.ConclusionsA possible opposite, if not antagonistic, role of coffee with regard to overweightness and insulin resistance, similar to that reported in hepatocarcinoma and cirrhosis, is envisaged in the natural history of NAFLD.

Ad36 adipogenic adenovirus in human non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Aims: Infection with specific pathogens may lead to increased adiposity. The human adenovirus 36 (Ad36) is a relatively new factor in promoting adipogenesis. It seems to improve the metabolic profile, expanding adipose tissue and enhancing insulin sensitivity in animal models. The aim of this study was to investigate whether any association or predictor effect of Ad36 seropositivity is present in non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a condition associated with obesity and insulin resistance (IR).

The effects of physical activity on apoptosis and lubricin expression in articular cartilage in rats with glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis.

Glucocorticoids are considered the most powerful anti-inflammatory and immunomodulating drugs. However, a number of side-effects are well documented in different diseases, including articular cartilage, where increases or decreases in the synthesis of hormone-dependent extracellular matrix components are seen. The objective of this study has been to test the effects of procedures or drugs affecting bone metabolism on articular cartilage in rats with prednisolone-induced osteoporosis and to evaluate the outcomes of physical activity with treadmill and vibration platform training on articular cartilage. The animals were divided into 5 groups, and bone and cartilage evaluations were performed using whole-body scans and histomorphometric analysis. Lubricin and caspase-3 expression were evaluated by immunohistochemistry, Western blot analysis and biochemical analysis. These results confirm the beneficial effect of physical activity on the articular cartilage. The effects of drug therapy with glucocorticoids decrease the expression of lubricin and increase the expression of caspase-3 in the rats, while after physical activity the values return to normal compared to the control group. Our findings suggest that it might be possible that mechanical stimulation in the articular cartilage could induce the expression of lubricin, which is capable of inhibiting caspase-3 activity, preventing chondrocyte death. We can assume that the physiologic balance between lubricin and caspase-3 could maintain the integrity of cartilage. Therefore, in certain diseases such as osteoporosis, mechanical stimulation could be a possible therapeutic treatment. With our results we can propose the hypothesis that physical activity could also be used as a therapeutic treatment for cartilage disease such as osteoarthritis.

Mediterranean diet and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease The need of extended and comprehensive interventions

BACKGROUND & AIMS Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is mostly related to increased BMI and sedentary life, even if it not directly attributable only to these or to single specific factors. Unhealthy lifestyle and obesity are the most probable causes, also in non-diabetic and without alcohol abuse patients, even if lean individuals can be involved. NAFLD treatment is currently warranted and driven by comprehensive lifestyle intervention, a valuable objective that is more often wished for than actually achieved. The aim is to re-assess the effectiveness of an intervention focused to increase the Adherence to Mediterranean Diet Score (AMDS) and the level of physical exercise, investigating the factors associated with failure and reporting the time that must elapse before such intervention becomes effective. METHODS The study included 90 (F 46, M 44) non-alcoholic non-diabetic patients, aged 50.13 ± 13.68 years, BMI 31.01 ± 5.18 with evidence of fatty liver by ultrasound. RESULTS A significant decrease of Bright Liver Score (BLS) was observed only after 6 months of intervention: differently, at the first and third month of monitoring fatty liver changes were still not significant. By a multiple linear regression model Adherence to Mediterranean Diet change (p:0.015) and body mass index changes (p:<0.0001) independently explain the variance of decrease of fatty liver involvement (R2 = 0.519; p < 0.0001). CONCLUSION Adherence to Mediterranean Diet is a significant predictor of changes in the fat content of the liver in overweight patients with NAFLD. The effect of the diet is gradual and favorable and it is independent of other lifestyle changes.

Effects of dietary extra-virgin olive oil on oxidative stress resulting from exhaustive exercise in rat skeletal muscle: a morphological study.

Physical exercise induces oxidative stress through production of reactive oxygen species and can cause damage to muscle tissue. Oxidative stress, resulting from exhaustive exercise is high and improvement of antioxidant defenses of the body may ameliorate damage caused by free radicals. Extra-virgin olive oil is widely considered to possess anti-oxidative properties. The aim of this study was to determine if extra-virgin olive oil improved the adaptive responses in conditions of oxidative stress. Twenty-four 12-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided in three groups: (1) rats fed with standard chow and not subjected to physical exercise; (2) rats fed with standard chow and subjected to exhaustive exercise; (3) rats fed with a diet rich in oleic acid, the major component of extra-virgin olive oil, and subjected to exhaustive exercise. Exhaustive exercise consisted of forced running in a five-lane 10° inclined treadmill at a speed of 30 m/min for 70-75 min. We studied some biomarkers of oxidative stress and of antioxidant defenses, histology and ultrastructure of the Quadriceps femoris muscle (Rectus femoris). We observed that, in rats of group 3, parameters indicating oxidative stress such as hydroperoxides and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances decreased, parameters indicating antioxidant defenses of the body such as non-enzymatic antioxidant capacity and Hsp70 expression increased, and R. femoris muscle did not show histological and ultrastructural alterations. Results of this study support the view that extra-virgin olive oil can improve the adaptive response of the body in conditions of oxidative stress.

Physical activity ameliorates cartilage degeneration in a rat model of aging: A study on lubricin expression

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common musculoskeletal disorder characterized by slow progression and joint tissue degeneration. Aging is one of the most prominent risk factors for the development and progression of OA. OA is not, however, an inevitable consequence of aging and age‐related changes in the joint can be distinguished from those that are the result of joint injury or inflammatory disease. The question that remains is whether OA can be prevented by undertaking regular physical activity. Would moderate physical activity in the elderly cartilage (and lubricin expression) comparable to a sedentary healthy adult? In this study we used physical exercise in healthy young, adult, and aged rats to evaluate the expression of lubricin as a novel biomarker of chondrocyte senescence. Immunohistochemistry and western blotting were used to evaluate the expression of lubricin in articular cartilage, while enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay was used to quantify lubricin in synovial fluid. Morphological evaluation was done by histology to monitor possible tissue alterations. Our data suggest that moderate physical activity and normal mechanical joint loading in elderly rats improve tribology and lubricative properties of articular cartilage, promoting lubricin synthesis and its elevation in synovial fluid, thus preventing cartilage degradation compared with unexercised adult rats.

Biomarkers of Chondrocyte Apoptosis and Autophagy in Osteoarthritis

Cell death with morphological and molecular features of apoptosis has been detected in osteoarthritic (OA) cartilage, which suggests a key role for chondrocyte death/survival in the pathogenesis of OA. Identification of biomarkers of chondrocyte apoptosis may facilitate the development of novel therapies that may eliminate the cause or, at least, slow down the degenerative processes in OA. The aim of this review was to explore the molecular markers and signals that induce chondrocyte apoptosis in OA. A literature search was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar using the keywords chondrocyte death, apoptosis, osteoarthritis, autophagy and biomarker. Several molecules considered to be markers of chondrocyte apoptosis will be discussed in this brief review. Molecular markers and signalling pathways associated with chondroycte apoptosis may turn out to be therapeutic targets in OA and approaches aimed at neutralizing apoptosis-inducing molecules may at least delay the progression of cartilage degeneration in OA.

Pregnancy, embryo-fetal development and nutrition: physiology around fetal programming

Abstract The purpose of this brief narrative review is to highlight the role of nutrition during the gestation period. We focused on the possible effects of imbalance of some nutrients in normal course of pregnancy and embryonic