Preparation of xanthan gum injection and its protective effect on articular cartilage in the development of osteoarthritis

This study was conducted to evaluate the protective effect of intra-articular (IA) injection of xanthan gum (XG) on articular cartilage in the papain-induced osteoarthritis (OA) model. The purified XG and injection were prepared and their qualities were evaluated. The rabbit knee OA model was induced through IA injection of papain and the protective effect on articular cartilage was evaluated through recording the width of knee joint, performing the morphological observation and histological evaluation of articular cartilage and synovium, measuring the sulphated glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) in cartilage. Our results showed that XG injection was of high transparency, low protein and endotoxin-free. IA injection of XG could protect the joint cartilage and this was probably an effective therapeutic method of OA. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.