Lihai Zhang*, Bruce S. Gardiner*, David W. Smith*, Peter Pivonka*, Alan Grodzinsky†
Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.5, No.2, pp. 133-154, 2008, DOI:10.3970/mcb.2008.005.133
Abstract Cartilage maintains its integrity in a hostile mechanical environment. This task is made more difficult because cartilage has no blood supply, and so nutrients and growth factors need to be transported greater distances than normal to reach cells several millimetres from the cartilage surface. The chondrocytes embedded within the extracellular matrix (ECM) are essential for maintaining the mechanical integrity of the ECM, through a balance of degradation and synthesis of collagen and proteoglycans. A chondrocyte senses various chemical and mechanical signals in its local microenvironment, responding by appropriate adaption of the local ECM. Clearly a… More >
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