The present work is the first instance where a novel multiple-particle tracking microrheology technique has been applied to study molecular interactions of clinical significance. Herein we describe the molecular changes due to lubricin-hyaluronate interaction and their effect on mechanical properties of synovial fluid. Along with bulk rheology studies it was found that lubricin, a boundary lubricant, increases the HA network formation conducive to the enhanced molecular layering of HA under stress which results in increased shear thinning. This interaction may also allow HA molecules to bind to the cartilage surface, providing boundary lubrication, by virtue of its interaction with lubricin.
Volume Subject Area:
Biomaterials and Biomedical Applications
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