Researchers explore new strategies to treat progressive osteoarthritis.
Current treatments for osteoarthritis—the top cause of disability around the world—relieve symptoms, but they don’t delay or reverse progression because they can’t address the underlying causes.
A recent German meta-analysis published in Nature may offer data to help improve the lives of people with osteoarthritis. Researchers identified 700 genes that could be involved in the etiology, or underlying causes, of the disease. Because these causes vary from person to person, the discovery could potentially lead to personalized treatments that target the biological factors contributing to the condition.Findings from Genetic TestingThe causes of osteoarthritis involve an interplay between genetic and environmental factors, the study authors noted. To identify causes that might lead to more effective treatments, researchers examined the genetic makeup of more than 1.9 million people.
They found 962 gene variants associated with osteoarthritis. Of these, they identified those variants specifically associated with different types of the condition—for instance, 151 associated with hip arthritis and 146 with knee arthritis. Of the 962 variants, 700 were designated as effector genes, meaning they are very likely causal for osteoarthritis.
Approximately 10 percent of the effector genes express a protein that approved medications already target. These approved