Thrombospondin-2 acts as a critical regulator of cartilage regeneration: A review

The degeneration of articular cartilage tissue is the most common cause of articular cartilage diseases such as osteoarthritis. There are limitations in chondrocyte self-renewal and conventional treatments. During cartilage regeneration and repair, growth factors are typically used to induce cartilage differentiation in stem cells. The role of thrombospondin-2 in cartilage formation has received much attention in recent years. This paper reviews the role of thrombospondin-2 in cartilage regeneration and the important role it plays in protecting cartilage from damage caused by inflammation or trauma and in the regenerative repair of cartilage by binding to different receptors and activating different intracellular signaling pathways. These studies provide new ideas for cartilage repair in clinical settings.

Automated summary

The degeneration of articular cartilage tissue is a common cause of articular cartilage diseases, such as osteoarthritis. Traditional treatments and chondrocyte self-renewal have limitations in addressing this issue. Thrombospondin-2 has been shown to play an important role in cartilage regeneration, protecting cartilage from damage caused by inflammation or trauma, and activating different intracellular signaling pathways to aid in the regenerative repair of cartilage. These findings provide new insights for cartilage repair in clinical settings.