A multi-omics analysis of chondrocyte allometry

Transcriptomic analysis on SHR chondrocytes supported enhanced glycolysis and aberrant mTOR signalling. The insulin-like growth factor (IGF) family is linked with chondrocyte development and homeostasis. We observed that SHR chondrocytes expressed a lower level of IGF1 at neonatal age. During chondrocyte development, we identified IGF2 as one of the most significantly downregulated genes in WKY, while genes involved in rheumatoid arthritis and glycolysis were prominently enriched in SHR. Overall design: Primary culture chondrocytes were harvested from femorotibial cartilage of spontaneous hypertensive rats (SHR) and its normotensive control Wistar Kyoto rats at 5 days or 3 months old. Cartilage condyles were isolated, thoroughly washed, then placed in cell culture medium supplemented with 0.5 or 3 mg/mL Collagenase D. The cartilage pieces were incubated at 37°C with 5% CO2 until a monolayer culture of chondrocytes was obtained.