Anti-Osteoarthritic Effects of Antarctic Krill Oil in Primary Chondrocytes and a Surgical Rat Model of Knee Osteoarthritis

• Published in: Marine Drugs
• Main Authors: Sae-Kwang Ku, Jong-Kyu Kim, Yoon-Seok Chun, Chang-Hyun Song
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2023
• Subjects: OA; cartilage; marine; PUFA; anti-inflammation; MMP; Biology (General); QH301-705.5; Antarc*; Antarctic; Antarctic Krill
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3390/md21100513; https://doaj.org/article/34d72cfc44ca4bfa80c209c2141dd4b5

Osteoarthritis (OA) is characterized by progressive cartilage destruction and synovitis; however, there are no approved disease-modifying OA drugs. Krill oil (KO) has been reported to possess anti-inflammatory properties and alleviate joint pain in knee OA, indicating its potential to target the inflammatory mechanism of OA. Therefore, the anti-OA effects of KO were investigated in primary chondrocytes and a surgical rat model of knee OA. The oral administration of KO at 200 and 100 mg/kg for 8 weeks improved joint swelling and mobility in the animal model and led to increased bone mineral density and compressive strength in the cartilage. The oral KO doses upregulated chondrogenic genes ( type 2 collagen , aggrecan , and Sox9 ), with inhibition of inflammation markers (5-lipoxygenase and prostaglandin E 2 ) and extracellular matrix (ECM)-degrading enzymes (MMP-2 and MMP-9) in the cartilage and synovium. Consistently, KO treatments increased the viability of chondrocytes exposed to interleukin 1α, accompanied by the upregulation of the chondrogenic genes and the inhibition of the ECM-degrading enzymes. Furthermore, KO demonstrated inhibitory effects on lipopolysaccharide-induced chondrocyte inflammation. Histopathological and immunohistochemical analyses revealed that KO improved joint destruction and synovial inflammation, probably due to the anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic, and chondrogenic effects. These findings suggest the therapeutic potential of KO for knee OA.