Major progress in osteoarthritis research
Friday August 27th 2021
A major step forward has been made in understanding genetic risk factors in osteoarthritis, researchers have reported.
In the largest study of osteoarthritis to date, which involved 825,000 individuals from nine countries, a global team of researchers led by Helmholtz Zentrum München, Germany, found for the first time genetic links between osteoarthritis and its main symptom, pain.
They also discovered previously unknown differences in disease risk for weight-bearing and non-weight-bearing joints, the first ever female-specific risk factors for developing disease, and the first risk factors for early-onset disease.
The study, published in yesterday’s edition of Cell, is the first from the Genetics of Osteoarthritis consortium, a global collaboration that is focused on understanding of the genetic underpinning of osteoarthritis and related traits.
Co-first author Cindy Boer from Erasmus MC University Medical Centre in the Netherlands, said: “Because we have investigated osteoarthritis in multiple joints, we have also identified specific genetic changes that underpin the risk for all forms of osteoarthritis. Some of these genes may prove to be validated as therapeutic targets for osteoarthritis, regardless of the joint affected.”
The researchers combined multiple lines of evidence to identify likely causal genes for osteoarthritis that constitute potential drug targets for the disease.
They say their findings substantially strengthen the evidence for potential therapeutics and provide opportunities for trying novel drugs.
Boer, Hatzikotoulas, Southam et al. Deciphering Osteoarthritis genetics across 826,690 individuals from 9 populations. Cell 26 August 2021
Tags: Europe | Genetics | Rheumatology
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