Osteoclast-derived exosomal miR-212-3p suppressed the anabolism and accelerated the catabolism of chondrocytes in osteoarthritis by targeting TGF-β1/Smad2 signaling

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common aging-related disease affecting entire joint structures, encompassing articular cartilage and subchondral bone. Although senescence and dysfunction of chondrocytes are considered crucial factors in the occurrence of OA, the exact pathogenesis remains to be investigated. In our study, chondrocytes were incubated with a conditioned medium obtained from osteoclasts at different differentiation stages, suggesting that osteoclasts and osteoclast precursors suppressed anabolism and promoted the catabolism of chondrocytes in vitro. In contrast, the function of osteoclasts was more significant than osteoclast precursors. Further blocking of osteoclast exosome secretion by using GW4869 abolished the effect of osteoclasts on chondrocytes. Functionally, exosomal transfer of osteoclast-derived miR-212-3p inhibited Smad2 to mediate chondrocyte dysfunction, thus accelerating cartilage matrix degradation in OA via TGF-β1/Smad2 signaling. The mechanism was also confirmed within the articular cartilage in OA patients and surgery-induced OA mice. Our study provides new information on intercellular interactions in the bone microenvironment within articular cartilage and subchondral bone during OA progression. The miR-212-3p/Smad2 axis is a potential target for the prevention and therapy of OA.