Fig. 6.

Knockdown of HIF-2α in joint tissues inhibits cartilage destruction at the cartilage–pannus interface. a–c Epas1 ^fl/fl mice were IA-injected with Ad-C or Ad-Cre (1 × 10⁹ plaque-forming unit ) to locally delete HIF-2α in joint tissue. K/BxN serum was transferred into mice to induce experimental RA. Representative images of HIF-2α immunostaining in the synovium and cartilage of ankle joints (n = 8) a. Detection b and quantitation c of synovitis, cartilage destruction (Mankin scores), and pannus formation (n = 10). d–f K/BxN serum was transferred to Epas1 ^fl/fl (WT) or Epas1 ^fl/fl;Col2a1-cre mice. Representative images of HIF-2α immunostaining in the synovium and cartilage of ankle joints d. Detection e and quantitation f of synovitis, cartilage destruction (Mankin scores), and pannus formation (n = 5). Values presented as mean ± standard error of the mean (*P <0.01, **P <0.001; NS not significant). Scale bar: 50 μm. B bone, C cartilage, cKO conditional knockout, HIF hypoxia-inducible factor, P pannus, WT wild type