Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, 151 Weill Hall, 526 Campus Road, Ithaca, NY 14850.
Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, 151 Weill Hall, 526 Campus Road, Ithaca, NY 14850; Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering, Cornell University, 151 Weill Hall, 526 Campus Road, Ithaca, NY 14850.
J Biomech Eng. 2020 Mar 1;142(3). doi: 10.1115/1.4046045.
Articular cartilage is one of the most unique materials found in nature. This tissue's ability to provide low friction and low wear over decades of constant use is not surpassed, as of yet, by any synthetic materials. Lubrication of the body's joints is essential to mammalian locomotion, but breakdown and degeneration of cartilage is the leading cause of severe disability in the industrialized world. In this paper, we review how theories of cartilage lubrication have evolved over the past decades and connect how theories of cartilage lubrication have been translated to lubrication-based therapies. Here, we call upon these historical perspectives and highlight the open questions in cartilage lubrication research. Additionally, these open questions within the field's understanding of natural lubrication mechanisms reveal strategic directions for lubrication therapy.
关节软骨是自然界中最独特的材料之一。这种组织能够在数十年的持续使用中提供低摩擦和低磨损，迄今为止，还没有任何合成材料能够超越它。人体关节的润滑对于哺乳动物的运动至关重要，但软骨的磨损和退化是工业化世界导致严重残疾的主要原因。在本文中，我们回顾了过去几十年中软骨润滑理论的发展，并将软骨润滑理论如何转化为基于润滑的治疗方法联系起来。在这里，我们借鉴这些历史观点，强调软骨润滑研究中的悬而未决的问题。此外，这些关于自然润滑机制的理解领域中的开放性问题揭示了润滑治疗的战略方向。
