The anti-inflammatory effect of caveolin-1 on the canine nucleus pulposus cells.

Abstract

Intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) is a common disease in dogs and humans, characterized by lower back or neck pain and/or neurologic deficits. Inflammation and matrix destruction are components of degeneration. Besides trauma and mechanical stress, genetic predisposition is known to be involved in the development of IVDD. Caveolin-1 is one of the genes known to be involved in IVDD. It is already known to have an anti-inflammatory function in macrophages, however its precise function in the intervertebral disc is yet unknown. Therefore, this research internship focused on investigating the anti-inflammatory effect of caveolin-1 on nucleus pulposus (NP) cells of the chondrodystrophoid (CD) dog in vitro. This was determined in a 7 day culture experiment of pellets of CD dog NP cells. The GAG and DNA content, gene expression and histology of Safranin-O/Fast-Green and collagen type I and II staining were used to study the effects of caveolin-1. Caveolin-1 supplementation increased the GAG content of NP pellets cultured in the inflammatory conditions and induced an increase of gene expression of matrix components while it reduced the gene expression of catabolic genes. However none of these changes were significant. Safranin-O/Fast Green staining indicated that caveolin-1 supplementation counteracted the catabolic TNF-α effects. In conclusion, caveolin-1 may have an anti-inflammatory effect on NP cells of CD dogs in vitro.