| Objective: To explore the effect of dioscin on the therapeutic effect of knee osteoarthritis (KOA) rats, and explore its possible mechanism. Methods: The KOA rat model was established by cutting the anterior cruciate ligament, 40 SD rats were randomly divided into the sham group, the KOA group, the dioscin low-dose (50 mg / kg)group and the dioscin high-dose (100 mg / kg) group, and 10 rats were assigned to each group, the sham group and the KOA group were administrated with normal saline by gavage,dioscin was administrated by gavage in the dioscin groups,once a day for 8 weeks.After 8 weeks of treatment, pain scores and histopathological observations were performed. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method was used to detect the contents of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α),interleukin-1 β( IL-1β) and interleukin-6(IL-6) in the joint fluid, and Western blot was used to detect the contents of WNT3a antigen (Wnt3a),recombinant beta catenin (β-catenin) ,human matrix metalloproteinase 13(MMP-13) and glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta(GSK-3β), Collagenase II(Collagen II) in the articular cartilage tissue.Results: Compared with the sham operation group, thermal withdrawal latency(TWL) and mechanical withdrawal threshold(MWT) of the KOA group were significantly increased (P＜0.05), while the TWL and MWT of the dioscin groups were significantly lower than those of the KOA group (P＜0.05); histopathological changes were significantly improved compared with those in the KOA group; the levels of inflammatory factors in the joint fluid, the protein expression levels of Wnt3a,β-catenin, and MMP-13 in the articular cartilage in the KOA group were significantly higher than those in the sham operation group, and the expression levels of GSK-3β and CollagenⅡ were significantly higher than those in the sham group. However, after dioscin treatment, the levels of inflammatory factors and the protein expression levels of Wnt3a,β-catenin, and MMP-1 were significantly lower than those in the KOA group, and the protein expression levels of GSK-3β and Collagen Ⅱ were significantly increased, and the differences were statistically significant ( P＜0.05).Conclusion: Dioscin can relieve knee osteoarthritis pain and cartilage degenerative changes, inhibit the inflammatory response in the joint cavity, and maintain the balance of cartilage metabolism, which may be related to the regulation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. |
