Stanford scientists found a way to regrow cartilage and stop arthritis
3 hours ago
- Stanford scientists discovered that blocking the protein 15-PGDH can regrow damaged knee cartilage in mice and human tissue.
- The treatment reversed age-related cartilage loss and prevented osteoarthritis after ACL-like injuries in mice.
- Cartilage from human knee replacement patients began producing new, functional cartilage after exposure to the 15-PGDH inhibitor.
- The mechanism involves existing chondrocytes shifting to a more youthful gene expression state, not stem cells.
- A clinical trial for a similar inhibitor is already underway for muscle weakness, raising hopes for a future cartilage regeneration therapy.