Fibroblast Growth Factor 18 Increases the Trophic Effects of Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells on Chondrocytes Isolated from Late Stage Osteoarthritic Patients

Osteoarthritis (OA) is known as the most common degenerative diseases in joints. Symptoms of OA include a group of mechanical abnormalities, which reflect the degradation\nof articular cartilage and the corresponding subchondral bones [1]. OA patients normally experience pain, tenderness, stiffness, locking, and/or effusion of joints. A lot of factors\nincluding genetics, developmental environment,metabolism, and mechanical injury are considered as causes for initiating degradation of cartilage. Once started, cartilage tissue will\nbecome thinner and thinner; then bony surfaces of joints will be protected and buffer less and less. Then subchondral bone may be damaged. As the most common type of arthritis, to be an anabolic factor on chondrocytes in articular cartilage [10]. It has also been reported that FGF18 may accelerate the biosynthesis of type II collagen synthesis and extracellular matrix deposition of chondrocytes [11]. Based on these reports as well as the fact that injection of rhFGF18 prevented cartilage degeneration in rat osteoarthritis models, FGF18 is believed to protect articular cartilage from intra-articular injury [12]. Furthermore, beneficial effects of FGF18 have also been shown in the repair of damaged cartilage in a rat study of injury-induced osteoarthritis, conducted by Moore et al. [13].