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Disorders affecting cartilage touch almost the whole population and are one of the leading causes of invalidity in adults. To repair cartilage, therapeutic approaches initially focused on the implantation of autologous chondrocytes, but this technique proved unsatisfactory because of the limited number of chondrocytes obtained at harvest. The discovery that several adult human tissues contain mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) capable of differentiating into chondrocytes raised the possibility of injecting MSCs to repair cartilages. The important data published recently on the factors controlling chondrocyte commitment must be thoroughly considered to make further progress towards this therapeutic approach. The potential application of MSC therapy provides new hope for the development of innovative treatments for the repair of cartilage disorders.

Qualitative magnetic resonance imaging of repair cartilage after micro fracturing procedure: Evaluation using dGEMRIC and T2 mapping A. Watanabe, C. Boesch, S.E. Anderson, W. Brehm, Y. Wada, P. Mainil-Varlet; Department Of Radiology, Teikyo University Chiba Medical Center, Ichihara, Japan, Department Of Clinical Research, Unit For Mr Spectroscopy And Methodology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland, Department Of Diagnostic, Interventional And Pediatric Radiology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland, University Of Bern, Institute of Pathology, Bern, Switzerland, Orthopedic Surgery, Teikyo University Chiba Medical Center, Ichihara, Japan, Cro, Allevia AG, Bern, Switzerland