Sergey Suchkov completed his Graduation and MD from Astrakhan State Medical University. He completed his PhD at I.M. Sechenov Moscow Medical Academy and Institute of Medical Enzymology and Doctor Degree at National Institute of Immunology, Russia. From 1989 to 1995, he was a Head of Lab of Clinical Immunology and Immuno-biotechnology at Helmholtz Eye Research Institute in Moscow. From 1995 to 2004, he was a Chair in Department for Clini-cal Immunology, Moscow Clinical Research Institute (MONIKI). From 1993-1996, he was a Secretary-in-Chief of the Editorial Board, Biomedical Science, an international journal published jointly by the USSR Academy of Sciences and the Royal Society of Chemistry, UK. Presently, he is a Professor in Department of Pathology, I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical Uni-versity and Department of Clinical Immunology, A.I. Evdokimov Moscow State Medical and Dental University; Dean in Department of PPPM Development and the First Vice-President at University of World Politics and Law, Moscow, Russia and; Secretary General at United Cultur-al Convention(UCC), Cambridge, UK. He is an author of more than 500 publications including 10 patents and more than 10 monographs, handbooks and textbooks published in Russia and USA. He is a member of New York Academy of Sciences, USA; American Chemical Society (ACS), USA; American Heart Association (AHA), USA and European Association for Medical Education (AMEE), Dundee, UK.

Abs against myelin basic protein (MBP), cardiac myosine (CM) and thyroid Ags (TPO, T3 and T4) endowing with proteolytic activity (Ab-proteases) are of great value to monitor chronic auto-immune inflammation and to thus illustrate the evolution of either of the above-mentioned auto-immune disorders. Ab-proteases from MS, AIM and AIT patients exhibited specific proteolytic cleavage of MBP, CM and thyroid Ags (T3, T3, TPO), respectively The activity of the Ab-proteases markedly differs between: (i) the patients and healthy controls, and (ii) different clini-cal courses, to to predict transformation prior to changes of the clinical course. The activity of Ab-proteases was first registered at the subclinical stages 1-5 years (regardless to type of the dis-order) prior to the clinical illness. Some (12-24%) of the direct disease-related relatives are sero-positive for low-active Ab-proteases from which seropositive relatives established were being monitored for 2-3 years whilst demonstrating a stable growth of the Ab-associated proteolytic activity. We saw also low-active Ab-proteases in persons at MS-, AIM- and AIT-related risks (at the subclinical stages), and primary clinical, ultrasonic and MRT manifestations observed were coincided with the activity to have its mid-level reached. The activity of Ab-proteases would confirm a high subclinical and predictive value of the translational tools as applicable for person-alized monitoring protocols. Ab-proteases can be programmed and re-programmed to suit the needs of the body metabolism. Of tremendous value are Ab-proteases directly affecting the physiologic remodeling of tissues with multilevel architecture. Further studies on targeted Ab-mediated proteolysis may provide a supplementary tool for predicting exacerbations and thus the disability of the MS, AIM and AIT patients.

Moustafa Rizk completed his Graduation as a Doctor of Clinical and Chemical Pathology in at Alexandria University, Egypt. He has >30 years of experience in the field of Protein separations using HPLC, 2DGE, electrophoresis and the field of automation and its application in chemistry. He was the Director at Alexandria University Hospital Labs for three years and at Alexandria Medical Research Labs. He is now Head of Department of Clinical and Chemical Pathology. He has published more than 35 publications in reputed international journals. He is a member of Board of Directors of Egyptian Society of Laboratory Medicine, Vice President of Muslim Youth Society since 2012.

Background: The metabolic imbalance in the articular cartilage following meniscectomy includes an increase in cartilage degradation with an insufficient reparative or anabolic response resulting in structural, biochemical and mechanical changes that can progress from pre-clinical, to pre-radiographic, to radiographic damage of the joint.

Aim: Aim of this study is to evaluate combinations of imaging and biochemical biomarkers for cartilage breakdown, synthesis and quantity in the early period of post-arthroscopic meniscectomy.

Subjects & Methods: 20 young adults (three of them were females) who underwent unilateral arthroscopic partial meniscectomy were evaluated. The patients had a mean age of 32.5 years (range, 24–39), mean BMI 28.5 kg/m2 (range, 24-34). Preoperative and six months postoperative US and MRI-based markers (cartilage thickness and volume, respectively) were quantified for medial and lateral tibio-femoral compartments for both knees. Preoperative, three and six months postoperative biochemical markers serum assays were measured; COMP and Col II (cartilage matrix breakdown) and PIICP (cartilage synthesis). These three markers were measured in an age, sex and BMI matched 20 healthy subjects for comparison.

Results: The meniscectomized knees had significantly lower total knee cartilage volume, P<0.05 but non-significant mean thickness than the intact contralateral knees. Among the individual biochemical markers, PIICP had the highest significant diagnostic accuracy quantified as the area under the receiver-operator characteristics curve (AUC) of 0.75 (95% confidence interval: 0.509-0.912) higher than all others, P<0.05 to distinguish subjects with progressive cartilage loss from nonprogressors. Diagnostically, ratio of COMP and Col II to PIICP scored AUC of 0.90 (0.69–0.98, higher than PIICP: P=0.0001). For prediction of cartilage loss, none of the individual markers could be used.

Conclusion: Cartilage volume loss by MRI combined with changes in cartilage matrix turnover detected by molecular biomarkers may reflect the initial changes associated with cartilage degeneration that account for early OA.