Western researchers could be bringing pain relief and a new treatment to people with osteoarthritis, after discovering a game-changing gene.
The gene plays a role in how the disease sets in to joints after an injury.
Dr. Frank Beier and his team say the one gene can affect millions of Canadians suffering from osteoarthritis.
Osteoarthritis affects one in ten Canadians and costs the health care system $10 billion.
The gene is call PPAR-Delta and when it was removed from the cartilage of lab mice after injury, the progression of the arthritis slowed down noticeably.
After injury, it accounts for 10 to 15 per cent of all cases of the disease, often affecting younger people.
The findings may also explain a link between osteoarthritis and obesity, suggesting it’s not so much rooted in the weight load on joints as the way fat molecules behave.
“The interesting thing with PPAR-Delta is that it's activated by lipids or fat components that we may take in through nutrition, but with increased lipid consumption, could activate this factor that leads to osteoarthritis,” Beier says.
Although diet and exercise remain important, the research suggests targeting the gene with therapies soon after injury might minimize osteoarthritis.
“This means we might have a concrete target for a drug that could bring relief to patients.” Beier says.
