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World J Stem Cells. Apr 26, 2026; 18(4): 117652
Published online Apr 26, 2026. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.v18.i4.117652
Published online Apr 26, 2026. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.v18.i4.117652
Modulation of osteoarthritis-related microRNAs using locked nucleic acid-antisense oligonucleotides boosts chondrogenic lineage commitment of mesenchymal progenitors
Marina Fontiveros-Palomino, Department of Molecular Biology, Universidad de Cantabria-IDIVAL, Santander 39011, Cantabria, Spain
Itziar Álvarez-Iglesias, Alberto González-González, Flor María Pérez-Campo, Department of Molecular Biology, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Marqués de Valdecilla (IDIVAL), Faculty of Medicine, University of Cantabria, Santander 39011, Cantabria, Spain
Ana Alfonso-Fernández, Department of Traumatology, Hospital Universitario Marqués de Valdecilla, Santander 39008, Cantabria, Spain
Author contributions: Fontiveros-Palomino M, Álvarez-Iglesias I, González-González A, and Pérez-Campo FM contributed to manuscript preparation; Alfonso-Fernández A and Pérez-Campo FM contributed to financial support and study conceptualization; Fontiveros-Palomino M and González-González A contributed to molecular laboratory work and histology analysis; Álvarez-Iglesias I contributed to laboratory work.
Supported by a NEXT-VAL grant from the Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Marqués de Valdecilla-IDIVAL, No. NVAL23/06; and a grant from the Instituto de Investigación Marqués de Valdecilla-IDIVAL, No. PREVAL 20/01 (to González-González A).
Institutional animal care and use committee statement: This study was approved by the Consejería de Agricultura y Ganadería de Cantabria (Spain) (Reference PI-08-21). All animal procedures were conducted in accordance with the relevant national and European regulations.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
ARRIVE guidelines statement: The authors have read the ARRIVE guidelines, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the ARRIVE guidelines.
Data sharing statement: The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Corresponding author: Flor María Pérez-Campo, PhD, Assistant Professor, Senior Researcher, Department of Molecular Biology, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Marqués de Valdecilla, Faculty of Medicine, University of Cantabria, Avda Cardenal Herrera Oria S/N, Santander 39011, Cantabria, Spain. f.perezcampo@unican.es
Received: December 15, 2025
Revised: February 10, 2026
Accepted: March 16, 2026
Published online: April 26, 2026
Processing time: 128 Days and 23.9 Hours
Revised: February 10, 2026
Accepted: March 16, 2026
Published online: April 26, 2026
Processing time: 128 Days and 23.9 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Our study demonstrates that a brief ex vivo priming of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) with locked nucleic acid-antisense oligonucleotides targeting osteoarthritis-related microRNAs improved early chondrogenic programming. In rat MSC micromasses, the miR-30b-5p/miR-193b-3p combination produced higher Sox9 and Acan, lower Runx2, and stronger histological evidence of cartilage-like matrix than single inhibitors and controls. This transient, non-integrative strategy provides molecular fine-tuning of MSCs and has the potential to enhance the consistency and durability of MSC-based therapies for cartilage repair.