Mice over-expressing salmon calcitonin have strongly attenuated osteoarthritic histopathological changes after destabilization of the medial meniscus.

Summary Objective Calcitonin is well-known for its inhibitory actions on bone-resorbing osteoclasts and recently potential beneficial effects on cartilage were shown. We investigated effects of salmon calcitonin (sCT) on the articular cartilage and bone, after destabilization of the medial meniscus (DMM) in normal and sCT over-expressing mice. Design Bone phenotype of transgenic (TG) C57Bl/6 mice over-expressing sCT at 6months and 12months was investigated by (1) serum osteocalcin and urinary deoxypyridinoline and (2) dynamic and normal histomorphometry of vertebrae bodies. In subsequent evaluation of cartilage and subchondral bone changes, 44 10-week old TG or wild-type (WT) mice were randomized into four groups and subjected to DMM or sham-operations. After 7weeks animals were sacrificed, and knee joints were isolated for histological analysis. Results Trabecular bone volume (BV/TV) increased 150% after 6months and 300% after 12months in sCT-expressing mice when compared to WT controls ( P P P Conclusions sCT over-expressing mice had higher bone volume, and were protected against cartilage erosion. These data suggest that increased levels of sCT may hamper the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis (OA). However more studies are necessary to confirm these preliminary results.