Humans Can Regenerate Cartilage, Study Finds, Offering Hope for Arthritis Treatment
Humans Can Regenerate Cartilage, Study Finds, Offering Hope for Arthritis Treatment
By Leslie Nemo | October 9, 2019 3:59 pm
If you get a cut, it’ll heal. If you lose some skin to road rash, it’ll grow back. But lose a limb, and it’s gone for good. Unless you’re a salamander, a zebrafish or an axolotl, of course — all of which can regrow missing limbs. Now, scientists find that some of the molecules crucial to that process are at work inside of us.
Specific microRNA molecules are key to limb regeneration in salamanders. It turns out that similar molecules in our own bodies can produce new cartilage to heal old injuries in our joints — countering previous beliefs that our joint cartilage couldn’t repair itself.
The discovery that the molecules are active in our leg joints might help scientists unlock new treatments for arthritis, soothing aching joints by promoting the growth of new, cushiony cartilage.
“So much is known about zebrafish and salamander limb regeneration, so how can that now be harnessed to accelerate human tissue repair?” says Virginia Byers Kraus, a co-author on the paper and molecular biologist at Duke University.
More:
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2019/10/09/humans-can-regenerate-cartilage-study-finds-offering-hope-for-arthritis-treatment/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A%20DiscoverBlogs%20%28Discover%20Blogs%29#.XZ6g3kZKjIU
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my orthopedic doc at my appt next Monday.
My rt. knee's torn meniscus has mysteriously improved but now my left hip is giving me hell. So much so I've had to pull out my cane to help gimpy me walk. Therapies won't be available in time for me but there's hope for future patients.
