Figure 2.

Combined treatment with interleukin 1β and tumor necrosis factor α caused cartilage degradation in mouse fetal metatarsals. (A) Mouse fetal metatarsals treated with a combination of interleukin 1β (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα) exhibit abundant cartilage resorption, whereas treatment with IL-1β alone had minor effects and TNFα tended to blunt longitudinal growth only. A representative picture of six independent experiments is shown. Scale bar represents 500 µm. (B) Treatment with IL-1β or a combination of IL-1β and TNFα significantly decreased bone length after 4 days and 7 days of treatment. Data represent the means of six independent experiments with 95% confidence intervals. *P < 0.05).