El Hassan A. Heidar; Bahjat Al-Ani; Mohamed A. Haidara; Fareed F. Al Faya; Suliman Al Humayed; Refaat A. Eid & Waleed N. Hassan

Osteoarthritis (OA) caused by ageing joints or as a secondary complication of diabetes is a common health problem. We sought to develop an animal model of OA induced by a combination of the chondrocyte glycolytic inhibitor mono-iodoacetate (MIA) and streptozotocin (STZ), the agent that induces diabetes mellitus. We then hypothesized that the extent of damages to the knee joint induced by this model can be greater than OA induced by either MIA or STZ. Rats were either injected with MIA (model 1) or STZ (model 2) or both agents (model 3). After 8 weeks, harvested tissues from the knee joint of these groups were examined using scanning and transmission electron microscopy. In addition, blood samples were assayed for tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin -6 (IL-6) that are known to be modulated in OA and diabetes. Compared to control group, substantial damages to the articular cartilage of the knee joint were observed in the three models with the severest in model 3. In addition, rats in model 3 showed significant (P<0.0001) increase in TNF-α and IL-6 compared to model 1 and 2. Thus, we have developed a new model of knee OA in rats that mimics a type of OA that is common among elderly people who have both, “ageing” joints and diabetes.

KEY WORDS: Knee osteoarthritis; Diabetes; Monoiodoacetate; Rat model; Cartilage ultrastructure.

HEIDAR, E. H. A.; AL- ANI, B.; HAIDARA, M. A.; AL FAYA, F. F.; AL HUMAYED, S.; EID, R. A. & HASSAN, W. N. Development of a rat model of knee osteoarthritis by a combination of monoiodoacetate and streptozotocin. Int. J. Morphol., 35(4):1383-1390, 2017.