This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Investigators identify genetic patterns that may predict osteoarthritis
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Patients with X-ray evidence of knee osteoarthritis who inherited a specific pattern of genetic variations in the interleukin-1 receptor antagonist gene were almost twice as likely as other patients to progress to severe osteoarthritis, according to a recent study.
Investigators with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine and Interleukin Genetics, Inc., followed 1,154 patients for up to 11 years to better evaluate the role genetic factors play in the worsening of osteoarthritis (OA).
The interleukin-1 receptor antagonist gene (IL-1Ra) is an anti-inflammatory protein that has previously been associated with severe knee OA.
|
|
“The strong association shown in this study between progressive [osteoarthritis] and the IL-1Ra gene variations, as well as the body of previous related published research, might suggest that this IL-1Ra genetic information could be tested as a tool to identify high-risk patients for participation in clinical trials for the development of a much-needed disease modifying [osteoarthritis] drug,” Joanne Jordan, MD, MPH, lead author of the study, stated in a University of North Carolina School of Medicine press release.
The study is the first of its kind to include African-Americans and Caucasians, as well as genetic, radiographic, serologic, physical and functional examinations of all participants.
Specific genetic patterns
The patients were monitored for a period spanning between 4 and 11 years to study initiation or progression of OA. At the start of the study, they were analyzed for genetic markers that predicted those who would remain stable and those who would progress to severe OA.
The researchers found nine genes they associated with OA progression, with the strongest prediction of progression coming from combinations of gene variations in the gene for IL-1Ra. The study demonstrated that three specific genetic patterns commonly found in the people with OA are strongly predictive of different risks for progression of OA once it has been diagnosed.
Implications of the study
The researchers noted that the findings could be useful in the development of new OA drugs – an initiative which has proven difficult because of the complexity involved in predicting which patients are more likely to progress to severe disease, as well as the resultant clinical trial complications and expenses.
“Drug development for [OA] has been challenging, in part due to the difficulty of enrolling patients who are likely to exhibit disease progression during the study,” Ken Kornman, chief scientific officer for Interleukin Genetics, stated in the release. “There appears to be strong potential to use the IL-1Ra genetic patterns to select for clinical trials patients who are more likely to benefit from an effective drug.”
Reference:
Follow
ORTHOSuperSite.com on Twitter