Table 2.

Catabolic mediator and matrix gene expression in cartilage from normal and arthritic joints. Mean values and standard errors are listed, and significant groupings of post-hoc Tukeys and LSD evaluation are shown by differing letters in parentheses.

Mean Transcription Levels	TNFα	IL-1β	ADAMSTS-4	ADAMSTS-5	MMP-13	Col-2B	Aggrecan
Normal	0.5205± 0.23(a)	2.62 ± 0.49(a)	408.5 ±272(a)	4579.3±846.8	0.69± 0.35(a)	117,236±43,815(a)	260,529±42,704(a)
Mild OA	5.167± 3.21(b)	7.22 ± 1.8(b)	1209 ± 523(ab)	4449±1442.0	1471.5 ±1030 (b)	30,562 ±10,778 (a)	61,518 ±19,688(b)
Moderate OA	15.46± 5.29(b)	19.95 ± 9.0(c)	1825 ±522 (b)	3285.1±721.4	2828.5 ± 1066(b)	44,832 ±35,573 (a)	17,356± 14,188(c)
Severe OA	15.13± 6.58(b)	19.17 ± (7.8bc)	1491.9 ±579 (b)	3602.9±1067.0	1567.6 ± 749(b)	297,913±81,986(b)	44,131 ±12,290(b)
P value	0.0007	<0.001	0.0011	0.49	<0.001	0.0047	<0.0010