Metabolic Regulation of Tendon Inflammation and Healing Following Injury

This review seeks to provide an overview of the role of inflammation and metabolism in tendon cell function, tendinopathy, and tendon healing. We have summarized the state of knowledge in both tendon and enthesis.

Recent advances in the field include a substantial improvement in our understanding of tendon cell biology, including the heterogeneity of the tenocyte environment during homeostasis, the diversity of the cellular milieu during in vivo tendon healing, and the effects of inflammation and altered metabolism on tendon cell function in vitro. In addition, the mechanisms by which altered systemic metabolism, such as diabetes, disrupts tendon homeostasis continue to be better understood. A central conclusion of this review is the critical need to better define fundamental cellular and signaling mechanisms of inflammation and metabolism during tendon homeostasis, tendinopathy, and tendon healing in order to identify therapies to enhance or maintain tendon function.