Table 1. Histopathological changes in the knees of the five studied groups.

	Sham (n = 4)	OA (n = 4)	OA + 0.5X SheaFlex75 (n = 4)	OA + 1X SheaFlex75 (n = 5)	OA + 2X SheaFlex75 (n = 4)
1. Cartilage matrix loss (mm)	0**	3.0 ± 0.8	2.7 ± 0.8	1.8 ± 0.2	1.3 ± 0.3
2. Cartilage degeneration score	0***	10.2 ± 1.0	5.8 ± 2.3*	3.1 ± 1.0**	3.2 ± 0.5**
3. Total cartilage degeneration width (mm)	0***	2.2 ± 0.2	1.7 ± 0.4	1.7 ± 0.2	1.1± 0.2*
4. Significant cartilage degeneration width (mm)	0***	1.5 ± 0.16	0.8 ± 0.3*	0.1 ± 0.1***	0.2 ± 0.1***
5. Zonal depth ratio of lesions	0**	1.7 ± 0.3	0.8 ± 0.4*	0.5 ± 0.2**	0.4 ± 0.1**

*p<0.05, **p<0.01, ***p<0.001, when compared to the OA group.