Lysyl Oxidase-Like 1 (LOXL1) Up-Regulation in Chondrocytes Promotes M1 Macrophage Activation in Osteoarthritis via NF-κB and STAT3 Signaling.

Purpose: Osteoarthritis (OA) constitutes a widespread degenerative joint disease predominantly affecting the elderly, leading to disability. There is still a lack of biomarkers for OA, so it cannot be intervened in time.

Methods: OA biomarkers were identified from human cartilage datasets using LASSO and SVM-RFE, followed by ROC analysis. LOXL1 was prioritized for further research due to its high expression in OA cartilage and robust predictive performance. Anterior cruciate ligament transection (ACLT) surgery-induced OA rats were used to explore the correlation between LOXL1 and inflammatory factors and macrophages. Macrophage markers and cytokine secretion were detected from macrophages treated with LOXL1, or co-cultured with chondrocytes after LOXL1 siRNA silencing.

Results: Five hub biomarkers with OA-specific expression were identified. Elevated LOXL1 correlated with IL-6 and IL-8 in patients and increased M1 macrophages in OA rats. LOXL1-stimulated macrophages upregulated CD86 and inflammatory cytokines. Silencing LOXL1 in chondrocytes reduced CD86, inflammatory cytokines, and NF-κB p65 and p-STAT3 expression in co-cultured macrophages, mitigating MMP13 and chondrocyte apoptosis. STAT3 and NF-κB signal inhibition reduces p-STAT3, p-p65, CD86, IL-6 and IL-1β expression in LOXL1-stimulated macrophages.

Conclusion: This study underscores the pivotal role of LOXL1 in activating M1 macrophages through NF-κB and STAT3 signaling, thereby promoting pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion and contributing to OA pathogenesis. LOXL1 holds promise as a potential marker for early diagnosis of OA inflammation and as a novel therapeutic target.