Abstract
Objective: To investigate the mechanisms by which chronic tobacco smoking promotes intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) and vertebral degeneration in mice. Methods: Three month old C57BL/6 mice were exposed to tobacco smoke by direct inhalation (4cigarettes/day, 5days/week for 6months) to model long-term smoking in humans. Total disc proteoglycan (PG) content [1,9-dimethylmethylene blue (DMMB) assay], aggrecan proteolysis (immunobloting analysis), and cellular senescence (p16INK4a immunohistochemistry) were analyzed. PG and collagen syntheses ( 35S-sulfate and 3H-proline incorporation, respectively) were measured using disc organotypic culture. Vertebral osteoporosity was measured by micro-computed tomography. Results: Disc PG content of smoke-exposed mice was 63% of unexposed control, while new PG and collagen syntheses were 59% and 41% of those of untreated mice, respectively. Exposure to tobacco smoke dramatically increased metalloproteinase-mediated proteolysis of disc aggrecan within its interglobular domain (IGD). Cellular senescence was elevated two-fold in discs of smoke-exposed mice. Smoke exposure increased vertebral endplate porosity, which closely correlates with IDD in humans. Conclusions: These findings further support tobacco smoke as a contributor to spinal degeneration. Furthermore, the data provide a novel mechanistic insight, indicating that smoking-induced IDD is a result of both reduced PG synthesis and increased degradation of a key disc extracellular matrix protein, aggrecan. Cleavage of aggrecan IGD is extremely detrimental as this results in the loss of the entire glycosaminoglycan-attachment region of aggrecan, which is vital for attracting water necessary to counteract compressive forces. Our results suggest identification and inhibition of specific metalloproteinases responsible for smoke-induced aggrecanolysis as a potential therapeutic strategy to treat IDD.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 896-905 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Osteoarthritis and Cartilage |
Volume | 20 |
Issue number | 8 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Aug 2012 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This work was supported by the Albert B. Ferguson, Jr. M.D. Orthopaedic Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation , 2010 ORS Collaborative Exchange Award to Nam Vo and Peter Roughley, and NIH grants AG033046 to Nam Vo, ES016114 to Laura Niedernhofer.
Keywords
- Aggrecan
- Intervertebral disc degeneration
- Matrix metalloproteinases
- Matrix proteoglycans
- Tobacco smoking