The effects of needle-warmed moxibustion on chondrocytes and lubricin in an osteoarthritic knee

Objective To investigate the effect of needle-warmed moxibustion on chondrocyte apoptosis and the lubricin protein content of osteoarthritic knees. Methods Forty New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into a sham operation group, a model group, a Western medicine group and a needle-warmed moxibustion group, each of 10. Knee osteoarthritis was induced in all except the sham operation group by injecting an aqueous solution of papain into the outer edge of one patellar tendon at the inferior pole of the patella. In the sham operation group the injection needle was only inserted and withdrawn. The needle-warmed moxibustion group had needle-warmed moxibustion applied to the internal and external DUBI acupoints 14 days after the modelling in 2 courses of treatment. The Western medicine group was given diclofenac sodium (15 mg/kg body weight) by gavage on the same schedule. The sham operation group and the model group were fed normally without special treatment. At the end of the treatment, knee cartilage tissue was resected from each group and the number of chondrocytes and the expression of lubricin in the articular cartilage cells were compared. Results Compared with the model group and the Western medicine group, the number of chondrocytes in the moxibustion group was significantly greater and the cells were arranged more neatly. TUNEL staining showed that the apoptosis rate of chondrocytes in the moxibustion group was significantly lower. A reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction showed that the expression of lubricin mRNA in the moxibustion group had increased significantly. Western blotting showed that the expression of lubricin protein was also significantly enhanced in the moxibustion group. Conclusions Needle-warmed moxibustion has a positive therapeutic effect on knee osteoarthritis, at least in rabbits. It can inhibit the apoptosis of knee chondrocytes and promote the secretion of lubricin. Key words: Needle-warmed moxibustion; Lubricin protein; Knee osteoarthritis; Apoptosis