TY - JOUR T1 - The level of synovial human VEGFA, IL-8 and MIP-1α correlate with truncation of lubricin glycans in osteoarthritis JF - bioRxiv DO - 10.1101/2021.03.11.434779 SP - 2021.03.11.434779 AU - Shan Huang AU - Kristina A. Thomsson AU - Chunsheng Jin AU - Henrik Ryberg AU - Nabangshu Das AU - André Struglics AU - Ola Rolfson AU - Lena I Björkman AU - Thomas Eisler AU - Tannin A. Schmidt AU - Gregory D. Jay AU - Roman Krawetz AU - Niclas G. Karlsson Y1 - 2021/01/01 UR - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2021/03/30/2021.03.11.434779.abstract N2 - Osteoarthrithis (OA) is an endemic disease due to the increase of the world’s elderly population. Previously thought to be a consequence of an imbalance between cartilage degradation and biosynthesis, it is now recognized as a disease also involving inflammation, hence influencing the level of inflammatory cytokines, growth factors and chemokines. Lubricin is a mucin type molecule where its OA induced glycosylation truncation propels a deteriorating lubrication of the articular cartilage. The objective of this study was to explore the OA driven truncation of O-linked glycosylation of synovial lubricin and its cross talk with systemic and local (synovial fluid, SF) inflammation. We compared the systemic level of cytokines/chemokine in OA patients’ and controls’ plasma with their local level in SF using a 44 plex screen. The level of 27 cytokines and chemokines was consistently measured in both plasma and SF. The data showed that the levels of cytokines and chemokines in OA plasma display limited correlation to their counterpart in SF. The level of synovial IL-8 and MIP-1α and VEGFA in OA patients, but not their plasma level, where the only cytokines that displayed a significant correlation to the observed lubricin O-linked glycosylation truncation. These cytokines were also shown to be upregulated exposing fibroblast like synoviocytes from healthy and OA patients to recombinant lubricin with truncated glycans mainly consisting of Tn-antigens, while lubricin with sialylated and non-sialylated T anigens did not have any effect. The data suggest that truncated glycans of lubricin, as found in OA, promotes the synovial cytokine production and exerebate the local synovial inflammation.Competing Interest StatementGJ, RK and TS authored patents related to rhPRG4 and and GDJ and TS hold equity in Lubris BioPharma LLC. TS is also a paid consultant for Lubris BioPharma, LLC. NGK, SH and CJ authored a patent using lubricin and cytokines for diagnostics and NGK and CJ hold equity in Lynxon AB. KAT, HR, AS, ND, OR, LIB and TE declare no conflict of interest. ER -