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OPEN Chronotherapy of Non-Steroidal

Anti-Inflammatory Drugs May
Enhance Postoperative Recovery
H. Al-Waeli1, B. Nicolau1, L. Stone   2, L. Abu Nada2, Q. Gao2, MN. Abdallah   3,
E. Abdulkader1, M. Suzuki2, A. Mansour2, A. Al Subaie2 & F. Tamimi2*
Postoperative pain relief is crucial for full recovery. With the ongoing opioid epidemic and the
insufficient effect of acetaminophen on severe pain; non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
are heavily used to alleviate this pain. However, NSAIDs are known to inhibit postoperative healing
of connective tissues by inhibiting prostaglandin signaling. Pain intensity, inflammatory mediators
associated with wound healing and the pharmacological action of NSAIDs vary throughout the day due
to the circadian rhythm regulated by the clock genes. According to this rhythm, most of wound healing
mediators and connective tissue formation occurs during the resting phase, while pain, inflammation
and tissue resorption occur during the active period of the day. Here we show, in a murine tibia fracture
surgical model, that NSAIDs are most effective in managing postoperative pain, healing and recovery
when drug administration is limited to the active phase of the circadian rhythm. Limiting NSAID
treatment to the active phase of the circadian rhythm resulted in overexpression of circadian clock
genes, such as Period 2 (Per2) at the healing callus, and increased serum levels of anti-inflammatory
cytokines interleukin-13 (IL-13), interleukin-4 (IL-4) and vascular endothelial growth factor. By contrast,
NSAID administration during the resting phase resulted in severe bone healing impairment.

Postoperative recovery following invasive surgical interventions is usually painful and can cause significant
morbidity and even mortality in some cases1. Postoperative pain is a response to injury in which inflammatory
mediators are released, inflammatory cells infiltrate the damage site, and nociceptive nerve fibres are activated to
produce pain2. Pain relief is crucial for full recovery; it is essential for the healing process and to resume physical
activities3. However, drugs typically used for postoperative pain management are problematic. Acetaminophen
is ineffective in severe pain, and while NSAID and opioids are useful for controlling surgical pain4, opioids can
cause constipation and addiction, and NSAID can delay healing5–8. Therefore, there is an urgent need for better
strategies to manage postoperative pain. One way of achieving this is by developing NSAID treatments that con-
trol pain and inhibit inflammatory catabolic activities while sparing the anabolic pathways of wound healing.
Inflammation is essential in healing9. For example, when connective tissues are injured, an inflammatory
response starts by the conversion of arachidonic acid (AA), either into prostaglandin H2 (PGH2) via cycloox-
ygenase (COX), or into interleukotrien A4 (LTA4) via 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO). Downstream specific synthetase
enzymes convert PGH2 and LTA4 into bioactive lipid mediators, such as prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), which play a
crucial role in tissue repair9,10. Also, release of pro-inflammatory cytokines and growth factors at the injury site,
results in increased secretion of prostaglandins. Prostaglandins contribute to the regulation of mesenchymal
cells11, thus by inhibiting the production of PGE2 via COX, NSAIDs reduce the production of PGE2, and subse-
quently inhibit the healing of conective tissues (bone, cartillage, dermis, etc) (Table S1).
All living organisms possess a circadian rhythm that anticipates the response to changes during the 24-hour
cycle12. The circadian system in mammals is composed of a central clock within the suprachiasmatic nuclei and
peripheral clocks inside all cells. The circadian clock is controlled through a feedback loop of heterodimer core
clock genes composed of circadian locomotor output cycles kaput(Clock) and brain and muscle Arnt such as
protein-1(Bmal1). Clock and Bmal1 drive the expression of two inhibitors, cryptochrome(Cry) and period(Per)13.
This molecular clock modulates the immune response and the healing processes in connective tissues13 (Fig. 1

1
Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University, 2001 Avenue McGill College Suite 500, Montréal, QC, H3A 1G1, Canada.
2
Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University, Strathcona Anatomy and Dentistry Building, Montreal, QC, H3A 0C7,
Canada. 3Faculty of Dentistry, University of Toronto, 124 Edward St, Toronto, Ontario, M5G 1G, Canada. *email:
[email protected]

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Figure 1.  Diagram of the circadian rhythm in immune cells, pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory
mediators, bone resorption and formation markers.

and Table S2). For instance, macrophage activity, leukocyte recruitment, and pro-inflammatory mediators such as
interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and interleukin-12 (IL-12) increase at the beginning of daily activity.
During this phase, the levels of Tol-Like Receptors TLR9 and TLR4 also increase, leading to the upregulation
of CCL2, CXCL1, CCL5, and subsequent leukocyte recruitment and potential tissue damage in injured sites12–
15
(Fig. 1). By contrast, anti-inflammatory mediators and other growth or angiogenesis factors, such as the vascular
endothelial growth factor (VEGF), peak during the resting phase13,16,17 (Fig. 1 and Table S2).
The circadian rhythm affects many aspects of connective tissue metabolism18. A 24-hour oscillation occurs
in bone tissue during growth19, formation, resorption20,21, and in the endochondral ossification during bone
fracture healing21. Bone formation occurs during the resting period, and resorption occurs mostly during the
active period21. Experimental studies in rodents and humans reveal that the disruption of sleep and circadian
rhythm impairs bone formation22. All bone cells such as osteoblasts, osteoclasts, and chondrocytes express clock
genes, such as Per or Cry, that influence bone volume regulation23,24. Cry2 influences the osteoclastic activity
and Per2 regulates osteoblast activity25. The circadian clock also affects pain, with sensitivity peaking during the
active phase26. Part of the pain response oscillation could be explained by changes in COX-1 and COX-2 activ-
ity throughout the day27, especially after an injury or insult28. These variations may contribute to the clinically
evident circadian variations in the pharmacokinetics effects of NSAID. Specifically, maximum absorption and
effectiveness are achieved when the drug is administered during the active phase when animals are awake29–33.
Different clinical studies suggest that careful selection of the time of administration can improve the effective-
ness of NSAID and can markedly reduce their undesirable effects34. These drugs exert a strong anti-inflammatory
effect when ingested or injected in the morning or early afternoon, but not in the evening, when the risk of its
adverse effects such as indigestion, stomach ulcers, and acute kidney problems increase35.
In this study, we investigated how time of NSAID administration impacts postoperative pain and healing. We
hypothesized that circadian variations in inflammation caused by clock genes could determine the postoperative
effectiveness of NSAID therapy. Accordingly, limiting NSAID administration to the beginning of the daily activity
phase should improve recovery. To test our hypothesis, we assessed the effect of surgery time and time of NSAID
delivery on pain and healing outcomes in a bone fracture surgical model in mice. We determined the most effi-
cient delivery time for NSAID after a bone fracture surgery. Moreover, we investigated the molecular differences
between the healing sites of mice that received NSAID during the active phase and those that received it during
the resting phase by characterizing the gene expression profile of fracture calluses in both groups.

Results
The timing of bone fracture does not affect bone healing and recovery.  To set the basis for the
assessment of NSAID chronotherapy, we first investigated the effect timing of bone fracture on bone healing and
recovery. We carried out this experiment by comparing pain behaviour and bone healing of mice that received
tibia fracture surgery during the resting phase (when animals are sleeping) to those that received the fracture
during the active phase (when they are awake) (Fig. 2).
There were no significant differences in pain behaviour between mice that received tibia surgery during
the active or resting phases (Fig. 3a,b). The guarding of the injured limb increased, but it returned to almost
pre-fracture levels by day 14. Similarly, the tendency to bear more weight on the uninjured versus the injured limb
increased after the bone fracture, but partially resolved by day 7.
Two weeks following surgery, the osteotomy sites of the fractured tibiae were subjected to micro computed
tomography (µ-CT) analyses to assess bone healing (Fig. 3c,d,e). We did not observed significant differences in the
bone volume to tissue volume (BV/TV), callus size, trabecular number (Tb.N), or spacing between the two experi-
mental groups. Moreover, the biomechanical analysis revealed no significant difference in the force to fracture, stiff-
ness or work to failure measurements between the bones harvested from the two experimental groups (Fig. 3f,g,h).

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Figure 2.  Study design and objectives.

Figure 3.  Effect of bone fracture surgery timing on pain and bone healing. (a,b) Pain assessment, (c–e) μCT
analysis and (f–h) mechanical analysis of tibiae fracture during resting time and active time at day 14 after tibia
fracture surgery. The data show that both groups (n = 8 per group) had similar pain behaviour (weight bearing
(WB), guarding tests (GT)), bone volume fraction (BV/TV), trabecular number (Tb.N), spacing between the
trabecula (Tb.Sp), trabecular thickness (Tb.Th), maximum force (MF), stiffness (S) and work to failure (WF).
All data are expressed as Mean ± SE values.

The timing of NSAID administration affects bone fracture pain and recovery.  To assess the effect
of the timing of NSAID administration on bone fracture pain and recovery, we used a methodology like that
discussed in the previous experiment (Fig. 2). We evaluated the pain behaviour of two groups of mice following a
tibial fracture. For pain management, after the bone fracture, one group received NSAID at the beginning of the
active phase, and the other group received NSAID at the end of the active phase.
Immediately after inducing a tibial fracture, all mice increased limb guarding and decreased weight bearing on
the injured limb, which are both indicators of pain. Two weeks after surgery, the mice in the group that received

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Figure 4.  Effect of NSAID dose timing on pain behaviour. Effect of NSAID administration on pain behaviour
(n = 8 per group) at 0, 7 and 14 days after surgery. (a) Guarding test mesh for the paw of the fractured leg, (b)
guarding test, (c) weight bearing test. Scores are expressed as mean ± SE values *P < 0.05.

NSAID during the active phase recovered the weight bearing in comparison to pre surgery values (P = 0.85,
Fig. 4c). However, mice treated during the resting phase still showed slower recovery after two weeks in compar-
ison to pre surgery scores in guarding and weight bearing tests (p < 0.05, Fig. 4b,c). Also, the mice treated during
the active phase bore significantly more weight on the injured limb at day 14 compared to the resting phase group
(p < 0.05, Fig. 4c).
To assess the effect of NSAID timing on bone healing, we analyzed the morphology and mechanical properties
of the harvested bones from the mice of the two groups described above. Two weeks after inducing the bone frac-
ture, µ CT analyses revealed that NSAID treatment during the active phase resulted in significantly larger callus at
the fracture sites, and higher bone volume to tissue volume, trabecular number, and decreased spacing between
the trabeculae, than NSAID treatment during the resting phase (Fig. 5b,c,d) (p < 0.05). Histomorphometric anal-
ysis of the fractured bones also revealed a significantly larger callus area and greater mineralized bone area in
mice treated during the active phase compared to the resting phase (Fig. 5k). This was associated with signif-
icantly fewer tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP)-stained osteoclasts in the animals receiving NSAID
during the active phase (Fig. 5n).
To investigate whether differences in biomechanical properties accompanied the difference in the structure of
the healing callus, the biomechanical characteristics of the healing bones from the two experimental groups were
investigated by three-point-bending tests (Fig. 5e,f,g,h). Analysis of the load-displacement curves showed higher
maximum force to fracture and stiffness in the fractured bones of the animals treated during the active phase, in
comparison to the mice receiving treatment during the resting phase (Fig. 5f,g,h). It is interesting to observe that
the administration of NSAID at the resting time resulted in impaired healing compared to mice not treated with
NSAID, whereas the “active time “treatment had the opposite effect.
Due to the importance of our results and their potential clinical implications, we decided to repeat part of
the experiments to confirm the results. This was done by a different group of researchers (QG MS) that repeated
independently part of the experiments in order to further validate of our results. This included the experiments
designed to assess the effect of surgery time, and the timing of NSAID administration after bone fracture, and
the subsequent analyses (pain and behavioural tests and bone healing assessment through micro CT scan and
mechanical bending tests).

The timing of NSAID administration affects systemic inflammation after bone fracture.  To
understand how the timing of NSAID administration after bone fracture affects the systemic inflammatory
response, we measured the levels of 20 inflammatory cytokines in serum. These analyses revealed increased levels
of interleukin IL-13, vascular endothelial growth factor, and IL-4, and decreased levels of IL-1β and interferon
gamma-induced protein 10 in the mice receiving treatment during the active phase compared to those receiving
it during the resting phase (p < 0.05) (Fig. 6a,b).

The timing of NSAID administration affects gene expression in bone fractures.  The effect of the
timing of NSAID administration on the expression of genes at the bone fracture site was assessed using RNA
microarray. Extracted total RNA pools were harvested on day 3 after surgery and examined for global gene expres-
sion profiles (Figs. 6c,d and S3a–c and Tables S3 and S4). NSAID administration during the active phase elicited a
different gene expression profile in comparison to the resting phase group. In comparison to the negative control
group (no NSAID and no surgery), there were 8300 genes expressed in the group that received NSAID during the
active phase after bone fracture, and 7200 genes expressed in the group that received NSAID during resting time
after bone fracture (Fig. S3a,b) (Data Set-Series GSE126648-GEO Repository). In total, 555 genes exhibited a sig-
nificant difference in expression of ≥1.5-folds (p < 0.05) between the two groups (Fig. 6c), including specific genes
involved in the bone healing process and macrophage polarisation, such as CCl12, Retnla, CCl3 and FGF growth. In
addition, clock genes such as Per2 were upregulated by NSAID administration during the active phase. Moreover,
genes known to impair bone healing, such as STAT1, were downregulated in the active phase group (Table S4).
According to a ‘gene ontology’ classification, the genes affected by the timing of NSAID administration were
mainly related to cellular, metabolic and biological regulation processes (Table S3 and Fig. S1a,b). Also, they
were associated with nine different signaling pathways, such as the circadian clock, inflammation mediated
chemokines and cytokines, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) pathway, interleukin, T cell activation, B

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Figure 5.  Effect of NSAID dose timing on bone healing outcomes. (a) μCT images of tibiae retrieved from
the NSAID resting time group (left) and NSAID active time group (right) at day 14 after tibia fracture surgery,
dotted line represents the average results without NSAID administration from Fig. 3. The group that received
NSAID at the active time had (b) a higher bone volume fraction (BV/TV) and (c) trabecular number (Tb.N),
(d) lower spacing between the trabecula (Tb.Sp) and higher trabecular thickness (Tb.Th) compared to the group
receiving NSAID at resting time (n = 7 per group). (e) The mechanical stress-strain curve of 3-point bending
tests on the fractured bones, (f) maximum force (MF), (g) stiffness (Stiff.) and (h) work to failure (WF) of
the fractured tibiae of each group (n = 7 per group), dotted line represent the average results without NSAID
administration from the surgery time experiment (Fig. 3). (i–n) Histology Von-Kossa-stained sections: (i,j)
mineralization in black at fracture sites in mice (i) receiving NSAID during resting time or (j) during active
time. (k) Percentage of mineralized tissue within the callus. Tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) stain
(l,m) shows the osteoclasts in the fracture site of mice receiving NSAID (l) during resting time and (m) active
time (scale bars represents 200 μm (big image, and 10 μm small image)). (n) Number of osteoclasts per unit area
of callus (n = 4 per group). All data are expressed as Mean ± SE values. *P < 0.05.

cell activation, axon, TCA cycle, and heme biosynthesis signaling pathways (Fig. 6d). Among these pathways, the
circadian clock and EGFR signaling pathways were expressed in the group that received NSAID during the active
phase but not during the resting phase.

Discussion
Our results suggest that NSAID administration during the daily activity period results in better postoperative
healing and recovery in a bone surgery model. This is likely due to the impact of NSAID timing on inflammation
at the healing site, especially through the overexpression of circadian clock genes such as Per2. This effect of
NSAID chronotherapy seems to be independent of the time of surgery.

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Figure 6.  Effect of NSAID dose timing on systemic inflammatory cytokines and gene expression of the healing
callus. (a,b) The concentration of serum cytokines during fracture healing: (a) serum concentrations of pro-
inflammatory cytokines, and (b) anti-inflammatory cytokines and growth factors. (c) Gene expression heat map
for the top 100 genes that showed at least 1.5-fold difference (P < 0.05), upregulated (red) or downregulated
(blue), at day three after fracture surgery for the group receiving NSAID at active time compared to those
receiving NSAID at resting time. (d) PANTHER pathway ontology analysis showing significantly enriched
Panther pathways (p < 0.05) of differently expressed genes between the group that received NSAID at the active
time compared to resting time at day 3 after fracture surgery. Concentrations are expressed as mean ± SE values.
*P < 0.05.

The expression of the genes involved in the circadian clock pathway and circadian rhythm biological process
was affected by NSAID chronotherapy (Fig. 6d). Clock genes such as Per2, Nr1d1, and Nr1d2 appeared to be
upregulated in the fracture sites of the group that received NSAID during the active phase, in comparison to the
resting phase group. This effect of NSAID chronotherapy is probably through the COX-independent pathway.
NSAID administration has been shown to affect Per2 clock gene expression in canine cancer cell lines36. Other
studies have shown that independent of COX pathways, NSAID administration affects a variety of transcrip-
tion factors that regulate Per2 clock gene expression, such as EGR-137,38, B- Catenin/TCF39, NF-кB40, ATF3 and
ATF441. Some of these transcription factors were expressed in both experimental groups in comparison to the
control group.
There is an increasing interest in the possibility of targeting of the circadian clock in therapeutic approaches to
control inflammatory diseases, metabolic diseases, and cancer; in addition to promoting healing and maintain-
ing hemostasis42,43. Our gene ontology analysis of the differentially expressed genes suggested that the timing of
NSAID administration after bone fracture affected several signalling pathways such as: the inflammation mediated
pathway, the interleukin, T-cell and B-cell activation signalling pathways, and the EGFR signaling pathway. Studies
have demonstrated the effect of these pathways44–46 on regulating cytokine signaling and the immune response.
RNA microarrays of the fracture site among the group that received NSAID during the active time revealed an
upregulation of genes signalling cytokines associated with the polarization of macrophage cells from M1 pheno-
type to M2 such as Retnla, FIZZ1 and IL-4R1 during bone healing47. This group also showed expression of genes

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associated with the recruitment of mesenchymal stem cells and the initiation of the angiogenesis process such
as CXCR4 and CCL1244 (Table S4). In addition, the group that received NSAID during the active phase demon-
strated a downregulation of transcripts associated with the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines including
Stat1, IL-9, IL-6ra, and IL-1848,49.
Bone healing involves an early inflammatory phase in which immune cells such as neutrophils, natural killer
cells (NK) and macrophages, as well as a variety of cytokines, initiate the healing cascade. Cytokine expression
varies throughout the post-fracture bone healing period; early stages of bone fracture healing present with
inflammatory cytokines that are eventually replaced by anti-inflammatory cytokines50. It has been demonstrated
that macrophages regulate the recruitment and activation of mesenchymal stem cells by secreting cytokines
such as IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α during the early period of the inflammatory phase51. In the subsequent period,
the mesenchymal stem cells immunoregulate the macrophages toward anti-inflammatory phenotypes through
a COX-dependent pathway that involves the production of PGE2. Afterwards, M2 macrophages produce
anti-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-4, IL-10, and IL-13 along with oncostatin M (OSM) to induce osteogene-
sis, and thus, inflammation is dampened and the tissue repair process is initiated51–53. The resolution of inflamma-
tion is a prerequisite for efficient tissue repair54. Prolonged inflammatory reactions associated with elevated levels
of pro-inflammatory markers appear to delay revascularization and affect the healing outcome54–58.
We found signs of a prolonged inflammatory phase in the group that received NSAID at resting time,
while there was an expression of anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-13, IL-4 and angiogenic factor VEGF) and a
decreased level of pro-inflammatory mediators and chemokines (IL-1β and IP-10) at day 3 following surgery in
the group that received NSAID during the active phase.
The COX enzyme, the key target of NSAID, plays a vital role in the generation of the inflammatory response
during the bone healing process by converting arachidonic acid to prostaglandins9. Also, the COX enzyme and
PGE2 have been found to affect the response of immune cells such as macrophages during bone healing in the
synthesis and release of pro-iflammatory and anti-inflammtory mediators15,59,60. Our study indicates that admin-
istrating NSAID during the active phase could modulate the synthesis and release of these cytokines by immune
cells (e.g., macrophages) through the COX-inhibition pathway, decreasing pro-inflammatory cytokines (e.g.,
IL-1β and interferon gamma-induced protein 10) and increasing anti-inflammatory cytokines (e.g., IL-13 and
IL-4) (Fig. 6a,b).
NSAID administration during the active phase after bone fracture improved bone healing by increasing
the percentage of mineralization tissue at the fracture site and decreasing the number of osteoclast cells, which
resulted in increased bone strength and better postoperative recovery. This effect on bone metabolism was proba-
bly a result of COX-dependent and COX-independent inflammatory pathways affected by NSAID chronotherapy.
Results from recent studies showed that endochondral ossification in fracture healing involves the circa-
dian clock genes, especially Per221. Taken together, the differential expression of the Per2 clock gene and the
over-representation of the circadian clock pathway along with other inflammation and immune pathways sug-
gested an immune and inflammatory response in the mice that received NSAID during the active phase that may
improve bone healing. Also, the microarray gene expression and cytokines analysis suggested that the timing
of NSAID administration after bone fracture stimulated the healing process in the group that received NSAID
during the active phase.
There is growing evidence indicating an association cytokine serum levels, and circadian clock genes like
Per212,13. For example, mice with Per2 mutations present alterations in the serum levels of immune cytokines
like IL-1B and VEGF, indicating that Per2 regulates these cytokines14,43. Thus on explanation to the changes in
immune cytokine levels we observed in our study could be the effects chronotherapy on the Per2 gene.
We observed an earlier resolution of the inflammatory process, which was manifested by an anti-inflammatory
state (increased serum levels of IL-13, IL-4 and VEGF) mainly due to the expression of genes that are involved in
the polarization of macrophage cells toward anti-inflammatory phenotype M2, which is associated with better
healing outcomes53. Schmidt and Serhan demonstrated that between the first day and day three after trauma, the
upregulated anti-inflammatory signalling coincides with the overexpression of angiogenic factors such as VEGF
in the hematoma of the bony environment54,56.
The M1 macrophage is associated with bone destruction and M2 cells with tissue repair. M2 macrophage cells
produce anti-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-10, IL-13, and IL-4 and promote osteogenic differentiation of
bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells, the precursor of the osteoblast61. The differentiation of mesen-
chymal stem cell to osteoblast requires direct cell-cell contact with macrophage cells (M2 phenotype), and the
production of a soluble factor known as oncostatin M. Oncostatin M production from this cell-cell contact is
regulated by prostaglandin E2 and cyclooxygenase 2 loops62.
Our study has several limitations. First, for the pain behaviour and bone healing experiment following NSAID
administration we used 2 different surgery times, the group receiving morning NSAID treatment had the surgery
done in the morning while the group receiving evening NSAID treatment had the surgery in the evening. This
allowed us to fix the time between surgery and NSAID administration in both groups. However, this approach
may have introduced a bias, which is the difference in time of surgery between the two groups, and this is a
limitation of our study design. Nonetheless, the fact that surgery time did not have a significant effect in our pre-
liminary experiment (without NSAID) provides validity to our findings. Secondly, to assess the effect of NSAID
chronotherapy on COX enzyme level, PGE2 and LTA4 we used the RNA gene expression analysis, which revealed
that the expression of two genes related to arachidonic acid pathway, the prostaglandin I receptor gene (ptgir) and
Arachidonate 5-lipooxygenase activating protein (Alox5ap) gene, were downregulated differently depending on
the timing of NSAID administration; downregulated more in the active time group.
Finally, choosing ZT 2 and ZT 13 as timepoints for surgery and NSAID administration was also a limitation
in this study. Indeed, using ZT 6 or ZT 18 time points would have allowed us to detect stronger effects of NSAID
chronotherapy since these timepoints correspond to the highest peaks and lowest nadirs of inflammatory activity

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respectively63. However, this would have had limited clinical applicability towards the management of bone frac-
tures, and surgeries in humans, as they rarely occur while sleeping in the middle of the night, and patients don’t
wake up in the middle of the night to take their medications. Therefore, even though the ZT6-18 strategy would
have allowed us to observe more pronounced effects, its translation to clinical implications is limited. Nonetheless
our results indicate that the effect of NSAID chronotherapy was strong enough to be detected with ZT 2 and ZT
13 timepoints.

Methods
Study design.  The primary objective was to estimate the effect of timing NSAID administration on pain
and bone fracture healing. In the first experiment we assess the effect of timing of bone fracture surgery in mice,
second experiment was to test the effect of NSAID administration during active period compared to resting phase
after bone fracture surgery in mice on pain and postoperative recovery. The third experiment was to identify
serum cytokines and different gene expression from the healing callus of fractured bone in ice between those
animals who received NSAID at different time of the day. For all experiments, replicate numbers are outlined in
Materials and Methods or figure legends. Minimum sample size was determined by power analysis based on an
estimated formula. Mice in all experiments were age-matched and randomized into groups. Experimenters were
blinded to experimental groups to remove bias. Adverse animal welfare issues were sufficient to halt experiments
but did not arise during this work.

The effect of the timing of bone surgery on bone healing and recovery.  To assess the effect of
the timing of bone fracture on postoperative pain and bone healing, we used a tibia-fracture model in mice. In
this model, animals underwent bone fracture surgery at two different times of the day (active and resting time).
Behavioural indices of pain including weight-bearing and guarding tests, as well as the biomechanical and histo-
morphometric properties of the healing bones were examined.

Animal model.  We acquired sixteen 4-months-old wild-type C57BL/6j mice weighing 25 to 28 g from
Jackson Laboratories (Bar Harbor, ME). We chose this strain, which is deficient in melatonin, to identify the
pathways independent of the melatonin systemic effect64. The mice were housed in pathogen-free conditions at
22 °C with a 12-hour alternating light/dark cycle fed on water ad libitum.

Experimental groups.  Cage assignment, mouse numbering and allocation to study groups were performed
by a researcher not otherwise involved in the study procedures. Mice were randomly assigned to one of two study
groups following an automated process using the Experimental Design Assistant from the National Centre for the
Replacement and Reduction of Animals in Research.
One group received open tibia-fracture surgery at the beginning of the resting phase corresponding to zeitge-
ber time ZT2, where ZT0 refers to the time the lights turn on in the animal facility (6:00 am). The second group
had the same surgery at ZT13, which corresponds to the beginning of the active phase when the light is off (from
6:00 pm onwards). Mice are nocturnal animals in which the active phase starts at the beginning of the night and
ends in the morning. These time points were selected because they could be easily translated into clinical practice.
Before the surgical intervention, mice were acclimated for two weeks to the environment and the facility and
exposed to behaviour testing equipment twice before obtaining baseline measurements.

Surgical intervention.  For our study, we used the open osteotomy fracture model developed by Grestenfield
et al.65. The tibia fracture surgical procedure adopted by previous studies from the lab66 and used by other groups
at McGill animal facility67. All surgeries were performed by the same operator who was not involved in the ran-
domization, allocation concealment process or outcome measurements. Anesthesia was induced initially with
a 4% isoflurane/oxygen mixture and maintained at 2%, and a buprenorphine (5%) subcutaneous injection was
given before surgery for pain control. An incision centred over the knee joint medial to the patellar ligament was
done to create an entry portal to the tibia medullary canal using a 27-gauge × ½ inch TB syringe. The stylet of a
25-gauge spinal needle was inserted in an intergrade fashion through the lumen of the 27-gauge needle down to
the distal growth plate, and its tip was used to bend the spinal needle wire, which was cut 1 mm above the bent,
then was inserted and adapted smoothly beneath the patellar pliers. The wound was closed with a 5-0 absorbable
vicryl suture. Mice were monitored for any signs of improper healing or infection. All animals were euthanized
two weeks later at the same time of the day.

Pain assessment.  Behavioural indices of pain including weight bearing and guarding were assessed at base-
line (pre-surgery), and on day 7 and 14 after fracture surgery. All assessments were performed at the same time of
the day by an investigator blinded to the experimental design and intervention group.

Guarding behaviour test (GBT).  Guarding behaviour test was done according to already stablished pro-
tocol used by Yasuda et al.68. Each mouse was placed individually on an elevated stainless-steel mesh. Both paws
(of the fractured and non-fractured legs) were closely observed for 1-minute periods every five minutes over one
hour (12 measurements). A score of 0, 1, or 2 had been given per the postural position of each paw in 1-minute
scoring periods. Score 0 was given if the injured side is blanched or distorted by the mesh (indicating weight
bearing); and score 2 means that the paw is completely off the floor, score 1 was given if the paw touched the floor
without blanching or distorting. After one hour session, the sum of the 12 measurements which could range from
score 0 to score 24 during the session was calculated for each paw. Subsequently, the scores of the fractured or
non-fractured leg were compared between different experimental groups.

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Weight-bearing test (WBT).  Weight bearing test was done to test the recovery of the treated limbs accord-
ing to an already published and established protocol69. The relative distribution of weight the animal bear on the
injured, and uninjured legs was determined by an in-capacitance meter (IITC.inc, CA, US). Each mouse was posi-
tioned in an angled chamber so that each hind paw rests on a separate weighting plate. The weight exerted by each
hind leg was measured for 5 seconds and then averaged. The change in paw weight distribution was calculated by
determining the difference in weight (g) between the left (control) and right (fractured) legs. This difference had
been used as a pain index in the fractured leg.

Assessments of the healing bones.  Following euthanasia, the harvested tibiae were examined by micro-
computed tomography (µ-CT), biomechanical testing and histomorphometric analyses.

Microcomputed tomography (μ-CT) assessment.  Ex-vivo scans of 14-day harvested tibiae were con-
ducted using a micro-CT (Skyscan 1172; Bruker-microCT, Kontich, Belgium), the methodology in this test was
based on two previous studies66,67. Scans were taken with a 5.88 mm pixel size, at scanner voltage and current set
to 59 kV and 167 lA, respectively. 3D reconstructions were created using the (CT-Analyser; Bruker micro-CT,
Kontich, Belgium) software to measure the callus size, total volume (TV), and bone volume (BV). The bone
volume fraction (BV/TV), and the trabecular number and thickness were calculated for the volume of interest,
which encompasses the fracture callus within a 1.5 µm (255 slices) vertical range, centered on the osteotomy site.
The region of interest (ROI) for each section was selected as the outer boundary of the fracture callus, excluding
the fibula. A binary threshold gray level of 68/255, corresponding to the murine trabecular bone, was used to
segment mineralized bone from soft tissue70–73 (Table S5).

Biomechanical testing.  The biomechanical properties of the fracture site were tested according to previous
studies67,74. A three-point bending test performed using a Mach-1a mechanical testing machine (Biomomentum ,
Laval, Quebec). The distance between the supports with the bending fixture was 10 mm, and the diameter of
®
the supports and loading nose was 0.25 mm. A downward bending load applied to the middle of the shaft of
the posterior aspect of the fractured tibia (over the fractured site) at a rate of 0.016 mm/second until failure. A
load-displacement curve generated using Mach-1 software (Tempe, Arizona); this was used to determine three
parameters: stiffness (N/mm), ultimate force (N), and work to failure (N*mm).

Histological analysis.  The methodology was previously described in Utvag et al.75. The bone fracture spec-
imen (right tibiae) were dehydrated in ascending concentrations of ethanol (70–95%) and embedded in methyl
methacrylate. After polymerization, three subsequent 6-μm-thick sagittal sections, crossing through the mid-
dle of the defect, were obtained from each sample and stained with either tartrate resistance acid phosphatase
(TRAP), Masson’s-trichrome or Von-Kossa stain to assess osteoclasts, collagen, and mineralization, respectively.
For each biopsy, one histological section per stain was analysed. The histological slides were imaged using an
optical microscope (Zeiss-Microscopy, Jena, Germany). Regions of interest for osteoclast, collagen and miner-
alized tissue histomorphometry were defined as the area of the histological section delimited by the callus and
the cortical margins of the bone defects. Osteoclasts were quantified using the ZEN-2012-SP2 imaging software
(Zeiss-Microscopy, Jena, Germany) and data was presented as osteoclast number per square millimeter of miner-
alized tissue (OC/mm2). The percentages of mineralized tissue and collagen in the defect analysed using ImageJ
v1.45 (Wayne Rasband; NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA) and data presented as mineralized tissue percent (MT%)76.
Histomorphometric analysis performed by an operator, who was blinded to group allocation.

The effect of the timing of NSAID administration on pain and bone healing.  To assess the effect of
the timing of NSAID administration on bone healing and pain, we conducted an experiment using 16 mice. The
housing and handling of mice and the surgical intervention were performed as described above.
Mice were randomly assigned to one of two study groups; one group received fracture surgery and postoper-
ative subcutaneous injections of NSAID (carprofen 20 mg/kg) only at resting time (ZT2) for three days, whereas
the second group had the same treatment at the active time (ZT13). The carprofen dose is equivalent to a typical
postoperative prescription of ibuprofen of 500 mg every 8 hours77. Mice were observed for any signs of improper
healing or infection. All animals were euthanized two weeks after surgery.
Pain behaviour assessments after bone fracture surgery and the examination of the harvested bones were
carried out as described above.

Identify inflammatory cytokines and metabolic pathways affected by the timing of NSAID
administration after three days of bone fracture surgery.  To address this aim, we performed a third
experiment with nine mice randomly assigned to three groups. One group received an NSAID treatment for three
days after bone fracture surgery during resting time (ZT 2) and the second group received the same treatment
during active time (ZT13), while a third group did not receive any surgery or NSAID. Surgery was performed for
the NSAID groups as described above at the same time of the day (surgery day 0) for all mice. Mice were observed
for any signs of improper healing or infection after surgery. All animals were euthanized on day three after the
surgery at 12 pm (ZT 6). This was 78 hours after the surgery; >30 hours after the final NSAID dose in the “resting
time” group and >18 hours in the “active time” group. This is enough time to eliminate the drug from the system
and rule out possible confounding effects due to the presence of the drug in the blood, as the half-life of carprofen
in rats is 8 hours78.

Assessment of early healing at the molecular level.  We performed a serum cytokine analysis and
RNA microarray sequencing of the healing callus three days after surgery.

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Cytokines profile for blood serum.  Blood serum was collected from each mouse at day three after the
surgery and frozen at −80° in separate vials until further analysis. For cytokine analysis, the serum samples
were thawed at room temperature. A multiplex inflammatory cytokine kit (Mouse Cytokine Magnetic 20-Plex
Panel-Thermofisher Scientific, Waltham, MA) and the Luminex 100/200 Multiplexing Instrument (Luminex
Corp., Austin, TX) was used to analyze the inflammatory cytokine profile of each serum sample. The Mouse
Cytokine Magnetic 20-Plex kit was used for bead assays of FGF basic, GM-CSF, IFN-γ, IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-2, IL-4,
IL-5, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12 (p40/p70), IL-13, IL-17, IP-10, KC, MCP-1, MIG, MIP-1α, TNF-α, and VEGF. These
®
assays were performed following the manufacturer’s protocol. The Luminex 100/200 System and xPONENT
instrumentation software were used for measurements and analysis. All experiments were performed in trip-
licates, and the mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) for each cytokine (the raw data) was used to calculate the
concentration of each cytokine79.

RNA isolation and whole-transcript expression analysis.  The central one-third of the fractured
tibia including all the callous and hematoma was harvested on day three post-fracture from the experimental
groups and stored in Alloprotect (Qiagen, Toronto, Ontario). The total RNA was isolated from bone tissue using
QAlzol (Qiagen, Toronto, Ontario) and then purified using RNeasy Lipid Tissue Mini Kit columns (Qiagen,
Toronto, Ontario) following the manufacturer’s instructions. The extracted total RNA sent for Whole-Transcript
Expression Analysis. Total RNA was quantified using a NanoDrop Spectrophotometer ND-1000 (NanoDrop
Technologies, Inc., Waltham, MA) and its integrity was assessed using a 2100 Bioanalyzer (Agilent Technologies,
Waltham, MA) (Fig. S3a,b). Sense-strand cDNA synthesized from 100 ng of total RNA, and fragmentation
and labeling were performed to produce ssDNA with the Affymetrix GeneChip WT Terminal Labeling Kit ®
(Thermofisher, Waltham, MA) according to the manufacturer’s instructions. After fragmentation and labeling,
®
3.5 µg DNA target was hybridized on GeneChip Mouse Gene 2.0 ST (Affymetrix, Waltham, MA) and was incu-
®
bated at 450 C in the Genechip Hybridization oven 640 (Affymetrix, Waltham, MA) for 17 hours at 60 rpm. The
®
GeneChips then were washed in a GeneChips Fluidics Station 450 (Affymetrix) using Affymetrix Hybridization
Wash and Stain kit according to the manufacturer’s instructions (Affymetrix). The microarrays finally were
®
scanned on a GeneChip scanner 3000 (Affymetrix). The data was normalized and only the entities that were
flagged as being present in the samples included in the analysis (GeneSpring GX 10, Agilent). To identify differ-
ences in gene expression the three experimental groups: unfracture control, gorup of mice that received NSAID
during active phase after bone fracture, and gorup that received NSAID at resting phase; we computed unpaired
student’s t-test between corresponding groups. Differences in gene expression with p values less than 0.05 that
demonstrated an up- or down-regulation by more than 1.5-fold were identified.
Using Go Ontology database (PANTHER Classification version 11)80, PANTHER Overrepresentation Test
was performed on the list of genes that were expressed significantly differently (p < 0.05) to identify the func-
tional biological processes involved by these genes. The proportional distribution of genes in each process was
calculated.
The list of genes that significantly differentiated between activity phase group to resting phase was employed to
identify significantly activated pathways by comparing their functional annotations according to the PANTHER
classification systems (PANTHER overrepresentation test, Reactome Pathways, version 11(2016), www.pant-
herdb.org) with the whole mouse genome (data updated to NCBI’s January 10 2011, release)80.

Statistics.  The sample size for the groups of the first two experiments was calculated on o.8 power, based on a
coefficient of variation of 25% in the types of data that are collected, and after accepting α and β errors of 5%. All
data expressed as mean ± SE. The normal distribution of the data was checked using Kolmogorov-Smirnov test.
For comparison between two groups, unpaired Student’s t-tests used when the data was normally distributed if
not Mann-Whitney test was performed. Two-way ANOVA analysis followed by Fisher LSD post hoc test used for
comparison between groups at different time points. Statistical analyses were performed using OriginPro 2017
(OriginLab, Northampton, MA). Differences were considered significant at p < 0.05.
For the cytokines experiment, a sample size of 3 with three replicated was used to achieve an α = 0.05 and a
power of o.8 according to previous studies81,82. Data not normally distributed were analysed using Mann-Whitney
test. OriginPro 2017 (OriginLab, Northampton, MA). For gene expression data, the PANTHER classification
systems (PANTHER overrepresentation test, Reactome Pathways, version 11(2016), www.pantherdb.org) with
the whole mouse genome (data updated to NCBI’s January 10 2011, release)83. Differences were “considered
significant at p < 0.05”84–103.

Study approval.  Study approval was obtained from the Animal Care Committee at McGill University. We
confirm all experiments were performed in accordance with relevant guidelines and regulations.

Received: 15 August 2019; Accepted: 19 December 2019;

Published: xx xx xxxx

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Acknowledgements
The authors would like to acknowldge financial support from the Canada Research Chair program for
Translational Cranofacial Research (F.T), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
(NSERC) Discovery program (F.T), the Alpha Omega foundation (H.A), the Quebec Network for Bone and Oral
Health Research (RSBO) and the Fonds de Recherche du Quebec-Sante (FRQS). We also thank the Bone Biology
Lab, McGill University for providing the space and the scan to perform the CT scan images. Also, we thank the
McGill Quebec Genome Center for their help with the gene expression analysis experiment.

Author contributions
H.A., Ph.D Candidate: conducted the in vivo experiments (animal handling, surgery, injection, bone harvesting,
blood collection, mechanical bending assessment, RNA extract and analysis, Luminex cytokines analysis urine
and blood collection, bioassays, locomotive activity and radiographic, mechanical and physical assessment of
bone), statistical analysis, microarray gene expression analysis and submission to the Gene Expression Omnibus
(GEO) database and drafted the manuscript. B.N., Associate Professor, Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University,
Montreal, Q.C., Canada: conceived the study, reviewed and analyzed the data, and edited the manuscript.
L.S., Associate Professor, Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada: conceived the study,
reviewed and analyzed the data, and edited the manuscript. MN. A., Ph.D holder and orthodontics resident,
from Faculty of Dentistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada: participated in the analysis of µCT and
reviewed the manuscript. L.A., Ph.D candidate in the Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University, Montreal, QC,
Canada: performed the behavioural assessment and participated in the histomorphometric analysis. A. A.L.,
Ph.D candidates in the Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University, Montreal, Q.C., Canada: helped with the surgical
procedures, and reviewed the manuscript. E.A., Ph.D candidates in the Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University,
Montreal, QC, Canada: helped with the surgical procedures, and reviewed the manuscript. A.M., PhD; helped
in the RNA extraction and reviewed the manuscript. Q.G., Ph.D candidates in the Faculty of Dentistry, McGill
University, Montreal, QC, Canada: helped with the surgical procedures, mechanical bending preparations, and
reviewed the manuscript. M.S.: PhD and post doc fellow in Tokyo and McGill university; performed the replicate
experiments of the study. F.T., Associate Professor, Faculty of Dentistry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada:
Supervised the conception of the manuscript, and all steps and the conducting of the experiments, participated in
the statistical analyses and writing the manuscript.

Competing interests
The authors declare no competing interests.

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Additional information
Supplementary information is available for this paper at https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-57215-y.
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