PNAS: Key genes protect osteoarthritis from occurrence

December 4, 2020 /--- Osteoarthritis is one of the most common problems associated with aging, and although there are already treatments for pain caused by ruptured cartilage in the joints, there are no treatments available to change the progression of the disease.
In a recently published study, researchers at the University of Washington's St. Louis School of Medicine found that a protein molecule linked to diabetes, cancer and muscular dystrophy also appears to be involved in the development of osteoarthritis, which may be a useful therapeutic target.
the gene, called FoxO1, was removed from mice and the animals developed osteoarthritis.
, when researchers increased the level of FoxO1 molecules in mice with osteoarthritis, the cartilage damage in the animals decreased.
(Photo: www.pixabay.com) the study was published in the journal PNAS.
. Redis J. O'Keefe, a senior research fellow at the University of Washington, said: "Osteoarthritis or arthritis is a disease that affects more than 32 million people in the United States alone, but there is no drug therapy to change its progress.
if we are to treat this very common disease more successfully, we need to better understand the basic processes of osteoarthritis and cartilage degeneration.
usually, a knee injury in an osteoarthritis patient can damage the half-moon plate of the knee.
over time, inflammation develops in the joints.
" unlike skin, bones or other organs regenerated from injury, cartilage has little potential for regeneration.
" but when the FoxO1 molecule levels in the mice in these experiments increased, the progression of osteoarthritis slowed or even reversed.
, the molecule interferes with cartilage damage and the development of arthritis by enhancing the process of autophagy in arthritis joints.
is the body's way of removing damaged tissue.
these experiments, the researchers found that autophagy was disrupted in mice with lower FoxO1 levels, and that the process was enhanced in animals with higher molecular levels.
" high levels of autophagy seem to be beneficial for maintaining these cartilage cells and therefore maintaining a healthy knee joint.
study raises the possibility of delivering FoxO1 to arthritis joints through nanotechnology to regulate autophagy and keep joints healthy, said O'Keefe.
(Bioon.com) Source: Gene that protects againstst osteoarthritis identified Original source: Cuicui Wang et al. FoxO1 is a crucial mediator of TGF-β/TAK1 signaling and protects against osteoarthritis by maintaining articular cartilage homeostasis, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2020). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2017056117。