biostudies-literatureUnknown8(1)Masuda IApples are well known to have various benefits for the human body. Procyanidins are a class of polyphenols found in apples that have demonstrated effects on the circulatory system and skeletal organs. Osteoarthritis (OA) is a locomotive syndrome that is histologically characterized by cartilage degeneration associated with the impairment of proteoglycan homeostasis in chondrocytes. However, no useful therapy for cartilage degeneration has been developed to date. In the present study, we detected beneficial effects of apple polyphenols or their procyanidins on cartilage homeostasis. An in vitro assay revealed that apple polyphenols increased the activities of mitochondrial dehydrogenases associated with an increased copy number of mitochondrial DNA as well as the gene expression of peroxisoScientific reports7229https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC5940809biostudies-literatureApple procyanidins promote mitochondrial biogenesis and proteoglycan biosynthesis in chondrocytes.PMC5940809Shimizu TSugiyama HMasuda IOzawa YNojiri HSugimoto AYokote KMizutani YWatanabe KSawada YKoike MSashihara KNakashima SfalseApple procyanidins promote mitochondrial biogenesis and proteoglycan biosynthesis in chondrocytes.Apples are well known to have various benefits for the human body. Procyanidins are a class of polyphenols found in apples that have demonstrated effects on the circulatory system and skeletal organs. Osteoarthritis (OA) is a locomotive syndrome that is histologically characterized by cartilage degeneration associated with the impairment of proteoglycan homeostasis in chondrocytes. However, no useful therapy for cartilage degeneration has been developed to date. In the present study, we detected beneficial effects of apple polyphenols or their procyanidins on cartilage homeostasis. An in vitro assay revealed that apple polyphenols increased the activities of mitochondrial dehydrogenases associated with an increased copy number of mitochondrial DNA as well as the gene expression of peroxiso2018-01-01T00:00:00Z2018 May2025-04-05T10:57:53.423Z2019-03-26T23:36:52ZS-EPMC59408092973998510.1038/s41598-018-25348-1