Your susceptibility to osteoarthritis could all be in your genes, according to research. The degenerative joint condition is the most common form of arthritis, particularly affecting older women and also those who have suffered from a fracture or joint injury.
A team of researchers from Washington University School of Medicine, in St Louis, examined tissue removed from injured knees and concluded that genes linked to obesity and ageing could also play a role in osteoarthritis.
The tissue the researchers looked at was the meniscus, cartilage found between the shinbone and thighbone, with tissue taken from 68 people who had had surgery to repair or remove torn meniscus. It is already known that a tear in the meniscus will lead to more than 50% of individuals going on to develop arthritis.
Osteoarthritis occurs when the cartilage or tissue between bone joints thins or wears away, causing the joints to rub painfully against each other. Pain, stiffness and swelling are typical symptoms of the condition, for which there is no cure. Some sufferers eventually require replacement surgery because the joint has worn so badly.
The St Louis team wanted to explore the relationship between our genes and arthritis. They analysed 28 different genes found in the meniscus that are related to obesity and ageing, examining their activity and effect on the knee joint. During their research, they isolated abnormal activity in four ageing-related genes and one obesity-related gene in the meniscus.
They found that the ageing-related genes had a low level of activity in older patients with the obesity-related gene having a low level of activity in overweight or obese patients. Both those groups are already at risk of osteoarthritis because heavier people put more pressure on their joints while the elderly suffer from wear and tear.
Their conclusion is that this low activity in the tissue could potentially cause the meniscus not to function normally and therefore be more susceptible to osteoarthritis.
The next step for the research team is to analyse every gene in the meniscus.
Comments are closed.