Surface of articular cartilage: immunohistological studies.

Using several physical techniques the surface of articular cartilage has been reported to be structurally different from the deeper layers. In this paper using immunohistochemical methods, the surface has been shown to contain a characteristically different collagen, Type I in contrast to Type II which is the major collagen of cartilage. These results support previous proposals for a surface layer, or lamina splendens, the presence of which would be of considerable importance in understanding the degradation of cartilage in arthritides.