Effect and Molecular Mechanism of Pomegranate Seed Oil on Postmenopausal Rat Model of Osteoarthritis

The objective was to study the pharmacological effect of pomegranate seed oil on postmenopausal rat model of osteoarthritis and investigate its molecular mechanism and better method for developing osteoarthritis models in primates by comparing it with the modified Hulth score. Rats with different amount of estrogen deficiency was fed by combination of ovariectomized female Sprague-Dawley rats' and pomegranate seed oil for six weeks. Then they were sacrificed and the knee joint tissues were made pathological sections to observe the pathological morphological structure of femoral condylar cartilage. Expression of cartilage metabolism associated genes were also analyzed. Pomegranate seed oil showed obvious protection effect on arthrodial cartilage in ovariectomized rats model of osteoarthritis a dosage dependent uemanner. Expression of matrix metalloproteinase-1 MMP1 and TIMP1 (TIMP metallopeptidase inhibitor 1) gene were downregulated accompanied with increment of pomegranate seed oil. Mechanism study showed that this could be related to MMP signaling pathway. Pomegranate seed oil can greatly benefit osteoarthritis in ovariectomized female rats. This study will lay foundation in clinical application of pomegranate seed oil in postmenopausal female osteoarthritis.