Neutrophils exhibit distinct phenotypes toward chitosans with different degrees of deacetylation: implications for cartilage repair

Introduction Osteoarthritis is characterized by the progressive destruction of cartilage in the articular joints. Novel therapies that promote resurfacing of exposed bone in focal areas are of interest in osteoarthritis because they may delay the progression of this disabling disease in patients who develop focal lesions. Recently, the addition of 80% deacetylated chitosan to cartilage microfractures was shown to promote the regeneration of hyaline cartilage. The molecular mechanisms by which chitosan promotes cartilage regeneration remain unknown. Because neutrophils are transiently recruited to the microfracture site, the effect of 80% deacetylated chitosan on the function of neutrophils was investigated. Most studies on neutrophils use preparations of chitosan with an uncertain degree of deacetylation. For therapeutic purposes, it is of interest to determine whether the degree of deacetylation influences the response of neutrophils to chitosan. The effect of 95% deacetylated chitosan on the function of neutrophils was therefore also investigated and compared with that of 80% deacetylated chitosan.Methods Human blood neutrophils from healthy donors were isolated by centrifugation on Ficoll-Paque. Chemotaxis was performed using the chemoTX system. Production of superoxide anions was evaluated using the cytochrome c reduction assay. Degranulation was determined by evaluating the release of myeloperoxidase and lactoferrin. The internalization of fluorescently labelled 80% deacetylated chitosan by neutrophils was studied by confocal microscopy.Results Neutrophils were dose dependently attracted to 80% deacetylated chitosan. In contrast, 95% deacetylated chitosan was not chemotactic for neutrophils. Moreover, the majority of the chemotactic effect of 80% deacetylated chitosan was mediated by phospholipase-A(2)-derived bioactive lipids. Contrary to the induction of chemotaxis, neither 80% nor 95% deacetylated chitosan activated the release of granule enzymes or the generation of active oxygen species. Despite the distinct response of neutrophils toward 80% and 95% deacetylated chitosan, both chitosans were internalized by neutrophils.Conclusions Eighty per cent deacetylated chitosan induces a phenotype in neutrophils that is distinct from the classical phenotype induced by pro-inflammatory agents. Our observations also indicate that the degree of deacetylation is an important factor to consider in the use of chitosan as an accelerator of repair because neutrophils do not respond to 95% deacetylated chitosan

Bone-repair properties of biodegradable hydroxyapatite nano-rod superstructures

Nano-hydroxyapatite (nano-HAp) materials show an analogous chemical composition to the biogenic mineral components of calcified tissues and depending on their topography they may mimic the specific arrangement of the crystals in bone. In this work, we have evaluated the potential of four synthesized nano-HAp superstructures for the in vitro conditions of bone-repair. Experiments are underway to investigate the effects of the material microstructure, surface roughness and hydrophilicity on their osseo-integration, osteo-conduction and osteo-induction abilities. Materials were tested in the presence of both, rat primary osteoblasts and rabbit mesenchymal stem cells. The following aspects are discussed: (i) cytotoxicity and material degradation; (ii) rat osteoblast spreading, proliferation and differentiation; and (iii) rabbit mesenchymal stem cell adhesion on nano-HAp and nano-HAp/collagen type I coatings. We effectively prepared a material based on biomimetic HAp nano-rods displaying the appropriate surface topography, hydrophilicity and degradation properties to induce the in vitro desired cellular responses for bone bonding and healing. Cells seeded on the selected material readily attached, proliferated and differentiated, as confirmed by cell viability, mitochondrial metabolic activity, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and cytoskeletal integrity analysis by immunofluorescence localization of alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) protein. These results highlight the influence of material´s surface characteristics to determine their tissue regeneration potential and their future use in engineering osteogenic scaffolds for orthopedic implants.Fil: D'elía, Noelia Laura. Universidad Nacional del Sur; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Química del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Mathieu, Colleen. École Polytechnique. Institute of Biomedical Engineering; CanadáFil: Hoemann, Caroline D.. École Polytechnique. Institute of Biomedical Engineering; Canadá. Groupe de Recherche en Sciences et Technologies Biomédicales; Canadá. École Polytechnique. Department of Chemical Engineering; CanadáFil: Laiuppa, Juan Andrés. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia; ArgentinaFil: Santillan, Graciela Edith. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia; ArgentinaFil: Messina, Paula Veronica. Universidad Nacional del Sur; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Química del Sur; Argentin

Lysosomal rupture induced by structurally distinct chitosans either promotes a type 1 IFN response or activates the inflammasome in macrophages

Chitosan is a family of glucosamine and N-acetyl glucosamine polysaccharides with poorly understood immune modulating properties. Here, functional U937 macrophage responses were analyzed in response to a novel library of twenty chitosans with controlled degree of deacetylation (DDA, 60-98%), molecular weight (1 to >100 kDa), and acetylation pattern (block vs. random). Specific chitosan preparations (10 or 190 kDa 80% block DDA and 3, 5, or 10 kDa 98% DDA) either induced macrophages to release CXCL10 and IL-1ra at 5-50 mug/mL, or activated the inflammasome to release IL-1beta and PGE2 at 50-150 mug/mL. Chitosan induction of these factors required lysosomal acidification. CXCL10 production was preceded by lysosomal rupture as shown by time-dependent co-localization of galectin-3 and chitosan and slowed autophagy flux, and specifically depended on IFN-beta paracrine activity and STAT-2 activation that could be suppressed by PGE2. Chitosan induced a type I IFN paracrine response or inflammasome response depending on the extent of lysosomal rupture and cytosolic foreign body invasion. This study identifies the structural motifs that lead to chitosan-driven cytokine responses in macrophages and indicates that lysosomal rupture is a key mechanism that determines the endogenous release of either IL-1ra or IL-1beta

Subchondral pre-solidified chitosan/blood implants elicit reproducible early osteochondral wound-repair responses including neutrophil and stromal cell chemotaxis, bone resorption and repair, enhanced repair tissue integration and delayed matrix deposition

Background: In this study we evaluated a novel approach to guide the bone marrow-driven articular cartilage repair response in skeletally aged rabbits. We hypothesized that dispersed chitosan particles implanted close to the bone marrow degrade in situ in a molecular mass-dependent manner, and attract more stromal cells to the site in aged rabbits compared to the blood clot in untreated controls. Methods: Three microdrill hole defects, 1.4 mm diameter and 2 mm deep, were created in both knee trochlea of 30 month-old New Zealand White rabbits. Each of 3 isotonic chitosan solutions (150, 40, 10 kDa, 80% degree of deaceylation, with fluorescent chitosan tracer) was mixed with autologous rabbit whole blood, clotted with Tissue Factor to form cylindrical implants, and press-fit in drill holes in the left knee while contralateral holes received Tissue Factor or no treatment. At day 1 or day 21 post-operative, defects were analyzed by micro-computed tomography, histomorphometry and stereology for bone and soft tissue repair. Results: All 3 implants filled the top of defects at day 1 and were partly degraded in situ at 21 days post-operative. All implants attracted neutrophils, osteoclasts and abundant bone marrow-derived stromal cells, stimulated bone resorption followed by new woven bone repair (bone remodeling) and promoted repair tissue-bone integration. 150 kDa chitosan implant was less degraded, and elicited more apoptotic neutrophils and bone resorption than 10 kDa chitosan implant. Drilled controls elicited a poorly integrated fibrous or fibrocartilaginous tissue. Conclusions: Pre-solidified implants elicit stromal cells and vigorous bone plate remodeling through a phase involving neutrophil chemotaxis. Pre-solidified chitosan implants are tunable by molecular mass, and could be beneficial for augmented marrow stimulation therapy if the recruited stromal cells can progress to bone and cartilage repair