ArticleJournal of orthopaedics and traumatology : official journal of the Italian Society of Orthopaedics and Traumatology2011
Mechanically induced experimental knee osteoarthritis benefits from anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties of simvastatin via inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase-3.
Article in Journal of orthopaedics and traumatology : official journal of the Italian Society of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 40 citations in OpenAlex.
- Histological and Immunohistochemical Methods in Normal and Osteoarthritic Knee Cartilage of Rat and Rabbit Models: A Literature Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Pooled it
- Statin use and knee osteoarthritis progression: Results from a post-hoc analysis of the SEKOIA trial.Joint bone spine · 2018Trial
- Trial
- Pathological mechanisms of osteoarthritis in the network of geriatric comorbidities: Emerging insights from organs-crosstalk.Journal of orthopaedic translation · 2026Review
- Article
- Simvastatin and fluvastatin attenuate trauma-induced cell death and catabolism in human cartilage.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2022Article
- Pleiotropic Effects of Simvastatin and Losartan in Preclinical Models of Post-Traumatic Elbow Contracture.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2022Article
- HMG-CoA Reductase Inhibitor, Simvastatin Is Effective in Decreasing Degree of Myocarditis by Inhibiting Metalloproteinases Activation.Biomolecules · 2021Article
- An Emerging Target in the Battle against Osteoarthritis: Macrophage Polarization.International journal of molecular sciences · 2020Review
- Modulation of the Inflammatory Process by Hypercholesterolemia in Osteoarthritis.Frontiers in medicine · 2020Article
- Association of Statin Use with Increased Risk of Musculoskeletal Conditions: A Retrospective Cohort Study.Drug safety · 2018Article
- Possible involvement of the oxLDL/LOX-1 system in the pathogenesis and progression of human intervertebral disc degeneration or herniation.Scientific reports · 2017Article
- Serum and knee synovial fluid matrixmetalloproteinase-13 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha levels in patients with late stage osteoarthritis.Acta orthopaedica et traumatologica turcica · 2016Article
- Simvastatin reduces fibrosis and protects against muscle weakness after massive rotator cuff tear.Journal of shoulder and elbow surgery · 2015Article
- Joint instability and cartilage compression in a mouse model of posttraumatic osteoarthritis.Journal of orthopaedic research : official publication of the Orthopaedic Research Society · 2014Article
- Current and emerging therapeutic strategies for preventing inflammation and aggrecanase-mediated cartilage destruction in arthritis.Arthritis research & therapy · 2014Review
- Lipid transport and metabolism in healthy and osteoarthritic cartilage.International journal of molecular sciences · 2013Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundWe investigated the anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effect of simvastatin on articular cartilage via the inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase-3 (MMP-3), a matrix-degrading enzyme, in a mechanically induced experimental osteoarthritis (OA) animal model. MATERIALS AND
methodsTwenty-seven albino Wistar rats were divided in three groups of equal number. Unphysiologic loading of articular cartilage was simulated by transecting anterior cruciate ligaments of the right knees of 18 rats consisting of groups 1 and 2. Nine animals in group 2 received orally administered simvastatin 20 mg/kg per day by gavage for 8 weeks. Animals in group 3 were sham operated. All animals were sacrificed at postoperative 8 weeks. Effects of simvastatin on disease progression was evaluated by documenting OA changes in cartilage specimens using Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI) OA cartilage histopathology assessment system scores combined with the percentage of MMP-3 expression in chondrocytes.
resultsSimvastatin treatment significantly down-regulated the percentage of MMP-3 expression in chondrocytes as assessed by immunohistochemistry methods. Suppression of this matrix-degrading enzyme by simvastatin also reduced OARSI scores, suggesting the potential for statins against OA progression.
conclusionsFollowing knee trauma, OA initiates at the molecular level in a short period of time. Irreversible structural changes in cartilage that require demanding treatment strategies led us to focus on effective measures to prevent OA. Statins have immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory properties independent from their serum-cholesterol-lowering effects. One of these widely used drugs, simvastatin, showed beneficial effects on OA progression and extent by reducing cartilage degradation in our experimental setting. If these results are confirmed by human trials, simvastatin might be considered by orthopedic surgeons as a disease-modifying drug during the early inflammatory phase of posttraumatic OA.
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