Cell Biol Int. 2019 Oct 23. doi: 10.1002/cbin.11256. [Epub ahead of print]

SUMO modified bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells promoted the repair of articular cartilage in rats.

Liu Y^1,2, Li M¹, Yin Z¹, Zhou S¹, Qiu Y¹.

Abstract

Articular cartilage damage can lead to joint deformity, pain, and severe dysfunction. However, due to the lack of blood vessels and nerves in articular cartilage, the self-healing capacity of damaged cartilage is limited. In this study, we overexpressed small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO)1, SUMO2/3, and SUMO1/2/3 in bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs). Then these cells were inoculated on surfaces of different hardness, and their differentiation into chondrocytes, hypoxic tolerance ability and inflammatory response were detected. Finally, BMSCs were transplanted into the injured knee joint cavity of the rats, and the repair was evaluated. We found that BMSCs overexpressing SUMO1 were more likely to differentiate into articular cartilage along the hardness of the surface, while BMSCs overexpressing SUMO2/3 could reduce inflammation response and improve the damaged cartilage microenvironment. In the rat model, BMSCs overexpressing SUMO1/2/3 transplanted on injured articular cartilage surface showed better survival, less inflammatory response, and improved tissue repair capability. In conclusion, BMSCs overexpressing SUMO are more tolerant to hypoxia conditions, and have stronger repair ability for damaged chondrocytes in vitro and for articular cartilage injury model in rats, and are excellent seed cells for repairing articular cartilage. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.