Fig. 3

Systemic administration of Resatorvid mitigates cartilage degradation and bone destruction in CFA-induced TMJOA mice. A Safranin-O/Fast Green staining revealed significant loss of proteoglycans in CFA-induced TMJOA mice at 2 and 4 weeks, while intraperitoneal administration of Resatorvid alleviated CFA injection-induced proteoglycan loss. Quantitative analysis of the modified Mankin OA score verified the mitigative effect of Resatorvid administration on condylar cartilage degeneration in TMJOA mice, two-way ANOVA, mean ± SEM, n = 6 (###p < 0.001 vs saline group; *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01 vs CFA group). B Representative immunofluorescence images detected the production of aggrecan (ACAN) in the condylar cartilage of mice at 4 weeks and quantified by the integral optical density of ACAN, one-way ANOVA, mean ± SEM, n = 5 (##p < 0.01 vs saline group; *p < 0.05 vs CFA group). C Immunohistochemical staining was used to analyze the expression of cartilage degenerative mediators (ADAMTS5, MMP13) and pyroptotic biomarkers (Caspase-1, GSDMD) in the condylar cartilage of TMJOA mice 2 weeks after intra-articular CFA induction. D The rate of degenerative mediator- and pyroptotic biomarker-positive cells increased in the condylar cartilage of CFA-induced TMJOA mice, while intraperitoneal administration of Resatorvid downregulated the production of the mediators described above, one-way ANOVA, mean ± SEM, n = 6 (##p < 0.01, ###p < 0.001 vs saline group; *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01 vs CFA group). E Representative TRAP staining images of subchondral bone showed that increased osteoclast activity in TMJOA mice at 2 weeks was downregulated by systemic administration of Resatorvid, as quantified by the number of TRAP-positive cells, one-way ANOVA, mean ± SEM, n = 6 (##p < 0.01 vs saline group; *p < 0.05 vs CFA group). F Micro-CT analysis detecting bone destruction in TMJOA mice at 4 weeks, severe bone destruction and three-dimensional structural disorders in CFA-induced TMJOA mice, which were relieved in Resatorvid-treated TMJOA mice