In osteoarthritis cancellous bone adapts to meet altered mechanical loading. These changes may be mediated by insulin-like growth factors (IGF-I and IGF-II), but the matrix bound binding protein, IGFBP-5 has not been investigated.
To measure IGF-I, IGF-II, and IGFBP-5 in femoral head bone from non-OA controls and patients with OA, and to relate these to apparent density (rhoA) and elastic modulus (Ec).
rhoA, Ec, and IGF system components were measured in cancellous bone from superior and inferior regions of femoral heads from 31 patients with OA and 11 age selected controls.
Ec and rhoA were greater (p<0.05) in the superior region of all femoral heads. In primary OA, rhoA was increased in the inferior region (p<0.05). IGFBP-5 was increased, about twofold, at superior and inferior regions in primary OA (1.60 and 1.54 ng/mg bone, respectively, both p<0.05) and in Paget's disease (2.44 and 1.75 ng/mg bone, both p<0.05) compared with controls (0.73 and 0.95 ng/mg bone). In controls, inverse correlations between IGFBP-5 and both rhoA and Ec at superior (rs = -0.64 and -0.73, both p<0.05) and inferior regions (rs = -0.72, p<0.05 and -0.24 (NS)) were seen, but these were lost in OA.
IGFBP-5 may modulate cancellous bone formation by negative feedback. In end stage OA this is disrupted, but has little influence on material properties.