Lories RJU et al. - Bone erosion at the enthesis does not necessarily precede entheseal ankylosis. Therefore the inflammation and new tissue formation in SpA are at least partially uncoupled events and may be different therapeutic targets. Methods
Objective was to test whether inhibition of bone erosion by targeting osteoclasts, would prevent or influence joint ankylosis in a mouse model
Male DBA/1 mice from different litters were caged together at the age of 8 wks
Treatment with zoledronic acid (ZA) (100 ng/g) or placebo was started at the age of 10 wks/2wks
Clinical incidence and severity of arthritis were evaluated twice a week until the age of 26 wks
At this point, bone density measurements were performed, mice were sacrificed and severity of arthritis was evaluated by histology
Results
Treatment with ZA did not affect incidence or clinical severity of arthritis in male DBA/1 mice
ZA treatment increased bone mineral density and content as demonstrated by dual X-ray densitometry and peripheral quantitative CT
However, the treatment did not affect histomorphological appearance of arthritis or ankylosis
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