Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Emerging concepts of the cell biology of the meniscus

2002; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; Volume: 13; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1097/00001433-200210000-00004

1531-7005

Cahir A. McDevitt, Sarmistha Mukherjee, Helen Kambic, Richard Parker,

Total Knee Arthroplasty Outcomes

Three distinct populations of cells are now recognized in the knee joint meniscus: (a) round or oval-shaped fibrochondrocytes; (b) fibroblast-like cells; (c) superficial zone cells. Injury to the meniscus causes apoptosis in specific sites and an upregulation of gene expression for type I, II, III, and VI collagen and other matrix molecules. Cells in the superficial zone respond to injury by increased expression of alpha smooth muscle actin and migration into the wound site. Together, these studies reveal that the meniscus is tailored to accommodate tensile and compressive stresses in different regions of the tissue. The meniscus mounts a vigorous repair response to injury by initial recruitment of a specific cell population to the wound site and an increase in gene expression for matrix proteins.