The role of Caveolin-1 in canine Intervertebral disc degeneration

Abstract

Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is common in both Chondrodystrophic (CD) and Non-chondrodystrophic dogs (NCD) and can lead to pain and neurological deficits (IVD disease). Current treatment options do not stop the degeneration process, but (new) regenerative treatments could perhaps prevent this problem in the future. The peptide Caveolin-1 (Cav-1) could be an important regenerative treatment option. It is known to regulate the WNT/β-catenin signaling- pathway, which is suspected to play an important role in IVD degeneration.

In this study we tried to further elucidate the role of Cav-1 in canine IVD degeneration. Two immunohistochemical stainings (Cav-1 and Tunel) were performed on 37 cadaveric IVDs to assess the relation between Cav-1 expression and cell apoptosis during different stages of IVD degeneration (different Thompson-, Pfirrmann- and Modified Boos scores). Our hypothesis that Cav-1 expression decreases during early IVD degeneration and increases during late IVD degeneration, was confirmed during this study. Also, a positive correlation was found between Cav-1 expression and cell apoptosis, especially in CD dogs during the end stages of degeneration. The contradictory findings between cell apoptosis and Cav-1 expression in Notochordal- (NC) and Chondrocyt-like cells (CLC) in NCD dogs suggests a different role for Cav-1 in these two cell types.