Open AccessWill o’ the wisp: CCN4 as a novel molecular target in osteoarthritis
Author(s) -
Leask Andrew
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of cell communication and signaling
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.329
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 1873-961X
pISSN - 1873-9601
DOI - 10.1007/s12079-010-0110-2
Subject(s) - osteoarthritis , wnt signaling pathway , medicine , arthritis , cartilage , rheumatism , phenotype , bioinformatics , in vivo , chondrocyte , pathology , biology , signal transduction , alternative medicine , microbiology and biotechnology , gene , genetics , anatomy
Osteoarthritis (OA), or degenerative arthritis, is characterized by mechanical stress‐induced changes in cartilage and bone. OA is a leading cause of chronic disability in North America and Europe. A recent study written by Blom and colleagues (Arthritis and Rheumatism 2009; 60:501–12) showed that elevated wnt signaling was observed in experimental OA as well as in patient samples. The authors found that the known wnt target WISP‐1 (CCN4) was also overexpressed; CCN4 was sufficient to recapitulate an OA phenotype in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that CCN4 may be a novel target for drug intervention in OA. This commentary summarizes these exciting findings.