Scientists from the University of Southern California (USC) have found a new way to help aging joints, giving hope to people with osteoarthritis.
This common joint problem affects millions, especially older adults. It happens when the cartilage in joints wears down over time, causing pain, stiffness, and trouble moving.
Right now, there is no cure for osteoarthritis. Treatments like exercise, physical therapy, pain medicine, and surgery only help with symptoms. They don’t fix the damaged cartilage. But this new research might lead to treatments that actually reverse some of the damage.
The USC research team, led by Denis Evseenko, looked at a protein called STAT3. They found that this protein can help turn back the “aging clock” in cartilage cells (called chondrocytes). When STAT3 is active, it makes these cells act younger and healthier.
This is related to something called epigenetics, which means changes in how our genes work without changing the DNA itself. These changes can affect how cells age. The team created a special “epigenetic clock” to measure how old cartilage cells are, based on their gene activity.
By using a chemical to activate STAT3, the researchers were able to reverse some of the aging in the cartilage cells. When they turned off STAT3, the cells aged faster, and the cartilage looked more like that of older people, which made the arthritis worse.
They also studied another protein called DNMT3B, which works with STAT3. In experiments with mice that had injured joints, the researchers found that when STAT3 was turned off, DNMT3B helped make the arthritis worse.
The damaged cartilage in these mice had lots of cells trying to become young again, but these immature cells didn’t work well in the long run.
This research is important because it shows that STAT3 could be used to help joints heal. If scientists can find a safe way to use this protein to repair cartilage without causing inflammation, it could lead to new treatments for osteoarthritis.
Even though this study is still in the early stages, it points in a hopeful direction. One day, doctors might be able to slow down or even reverse joint aging, helping people move more easily and avoid painful surgeries.
The study was published in the journal Aging Cell. It’s part of ongoing research to understand how proteins like STAT3 can help fight age-related diseases like osteoarthritis. This discovery could lead to better ways to treat the disease and improve life for millions of people.
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