Biomechanics, obesity, and osteoarthritis. The role of adipokines: When the levee breaks

Abstract

Osteoarthritis is a high-incidence painful and debilitating disease characterized by progressive degeneration of articular joints, which indicates a breakdown in joint homeostasis favoring catabolic processes. Biomechanical loading, associated with inflammatory and metabolic imbalances of joint, strongly contributes to the initiation and progression of the disease. Obesity is a primary risk factor for disease onset, and mechanical factors increased the risk for disease progression. Moreover, inflammatory mediators, in particular, adipose tissue-derived cytokines (better known as adipokines) play a critical role linking obesity and osteoarthritis. The present article summarizes the knowledge about the role of adipokines in cartilage and bone function, highlighting their contribution to the imbalance of joint homeostasis and, consequently, pathogenesis of osteoarthritis. © 2017 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 36:594-604, 2018.

Spontaneous dog osteoarthritis — a One Medicine vision

“…Although the aetiology of obesity-related OA remains unclear, biomechanical effects from the overloading of weight-bearing joints have been proposed as a mechanism despite the fact that the risk of hand OA is also increased in obese humans 25 , which suggests a systemic role for obesity as a risk factor. An alternative mechanism in which adipose tissue promotes systemic low-grade inflammation via increased concentrations of adipokines has also been put forward 26 , and dog adipocytes are known to express important adipokines, suggesting that metabolic factors associated with being overweight or obese exert an independent risk of developing OA 27 .…”

CITED2 mediates the mechanical loading–induced suppression of adipokines in the infrapatellar fat pad

“…Chronic low‐grade inflammation plays a key role in the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis (OA) . Obesity, which emerging evidence implicates as a major risk factor for knee OA, induces a low‐grade systemic inflammatory state characterized by the production of adipokines and proinflammatory cytokines by adipose tissue . The infrapatellar fat pad (IPFP), also known as Hoffa's fat pad, is the main adipose structure within the knee joint, and plays a role in distributing mechanical loads within the articular joint .…”

“…[1][2][3][4] Obesity, which emerging evidence implicates as a major risk factor for knee OA, [5][6][7] induces a low-grade systemic inflammatory state characterized by the production of adipokines and proinflammatory cytokines by adipose tissue. [8][9][10] The infrapatellar fat pad (IPFP), also known as Hoffa's fat pad, is the main adipose structure within the knee joint, 11 and plays a role in distributing mechanical loads within the articular joint. 12 The IPFP has been suggested to be involved in OA pathogenesis [13][14][15][16][17][18] by secreting proinflammatory cytokines (e.g., TNF-␣ and IL-6 14,17,[19][20][21] ) and adipokines (adipose tissue-derived cytokines), 8,22,23 contributing to intra-articular inflammation and pain.…”

Musculoskeletal mechanobiology: A new era for MechanoMedicine

“…With this goal in mind, we are pleased to introduce this special issue in Musculoskeletal Mechanobiology. This special issue begins with several outstanding reviews that provide updates on the significance of mechanobiology in musculoskeletal research involving cartilage, tendon, muscle and bone, and that span topics from the role of candidate mechanosensors and chemical mediators, in vitro and in vivo models of tissue injury and repair, and supporting technologies . The majority of original articles following the review papers are related to the mechanobiology of bone and cartilage, tissues whose physical regulation have traditionally garnered intensive research focus, followed by complementary research papers in areas of growing prominence: Ligaments, intervertebral discs, and stem cells …”

“…This special issue begins with several outstanding reviews that provide updates on the significance of mechanobiology in musculoskeletal research involving cartilage, tendon, muscle and bone, [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] and that span topics from the role of candidate mechanosensors and chemical mediators, 1,5,9,10 in vitro and in vivo models of tissue injury and repair, 3,4 and supporting technologies. 6,7 The majority of original articles following the review papers are related to the mechanobiology of bone and cartilage, [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23] tissues whose physical regulation have traditionally garnered intensive research focus, followed by complementary research papers in areas of growing prominence: Ligaments, intervertebral discs, and stem cells. [24][25][26][27][28] From this Special Issue in Musculoskeletal Mechanobiology, it is clear that it has become technically possible to trace the impact of mechanics from individual molecules to an entire organism.…”