Open AccessVersican contributes to ligament formation of knee joints
Author(s) -
Tomoko Higuchi,
Daisuke Suzuki,
Takafumi Watanabe,
Kanda Fanhchaksai,
Keiko Ota,
Kazuhisa Yokoo,
Hiroshi Furukawa,
Hideto Watanabe
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0250366
Subject(s) - versican , anatomy , extracellular matrix , cartilage , immunostaining , microbiology and biotechnology , conditional gene knockout , pathology , chemistry , biology , proteoglycan , medicine , phenotype , immunohistochemistry , biochemistry , gene
Versican is a large proteoglycan in the extracellular matrix. During embryonic stages, it plays a crucial role in the development of cartilage, heart, and dermis. Previously, we reported that Prx1-Vcan conditional knockout mice, lacking Vcan expression in mesenchymal condensation areas of the limb bud, show the impaired joint formation and delayed cartilage development. Here, we investigated their phenotype in adults and found that they develop swelling of the knee joint. Histologically, their newborn joint exhibited impaired formation of both anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments. Immunostaining revealed a decrease in scleraxis-positive cells in both articular cartilage and ligament of Prx1-Vcan knee joint, spotty patterns of type I collagen, and the presence of type II collagen concomitant with the absence of versican expression. These results suggest that versican expression during the perinatal period is required for cruciate ligaments’ formation and that its depletion affects joint function in later ages.