Open AccessEnhanced expression of the central survival of motor neuron ( SMN ) protein during the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis
Author(s) -
Cucchiarini Magali,
Madry Henning,
Terwilliger Ernest F.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of cellular and molecular medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.44
H-Index - 130
eISSN - 1582-4934
pISSN - 1582-1838
DOI - 10.1111/jcmm.12170
Subject(s) - pathogenesis , motor neuron , osteoarthritis , spinal muscular atrophy , disease , biology , medicine , pathophysiology , pathology , bioinformatics , neuroscience , cancer research , alternative medicine
Abstract The identification of new components implicated in the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis ( OA ) might improve our understanding of the disease process. Here, we investigated the levels of the survival of motor neuron ( SMN ) expression in OA cartilage considering the fundamental role of the SMN protein in cell survival and its involvement in other stress‐associated pathologies. We report that SMN expression is up‐regulated in human OA compared with normal cartilage, showing a strong correlation with the disease severity, a result confirmed in vivo in an experimental model of the disease. We further show that the prominent inflammatory cytokines ( IL ‐1β, TNF ‐α) are critical inducers of SMN expression. This is in marked contrast with the reported impaired levels of SMN in spinal muscular atrophy, a single inherited neuromuscular disorder characterized by mutations in the smn gene whereas OA is a complex disease with multiple aetiologies. While the precise functions of SMN during OA remain to be elucidated, the conclusions of this study shed light on a novel pathophysiological pathway involved in the progression of OA , potentially offering new targets for therapy.