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03 Sep 2008
A team of researchers has found genetic proof of how osteoarthritis destroys joint cartilage, a study published in the online pages of the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research has suggested.
The work was carried out by a team made up of staff from a number of medical institutions and found a link between higher levels of a protein called beta-catenin and osteoporosis.
Mice were genetically altered to have high levels of the protein and it was found that they lost most of their articular cartilage - which is the protective layer that covers the ends of bones within joints.
A companion experiment carried out on human cartilage cells from patients suffering from severe arthritis, the symptoms of which include soreness and stiffness, also indicated that their levels of beta-catenin were higher than normal.
"We have created study the first model in a living animal that shows exactly how osteoarthritis causes damage," comments lead author of the study Dr Di Chen, fro the University of Rochester Medical Centre in the USA.
The researchers also state that the results of the study serve as a foundation for the creation of new treatments for osteoarthritis.
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