Download Hebrew University research provides promise

Hebrew University research provides promise
for better dealing with osteoarthritis
Jerusalem, Nov. 23, 2011 – A step towards better understanding of the biological
mechanism involved in the onset of osteoarthritis (OA), which affects millions of
people around the world, has been shown in research carried out at the Hebrew
University of Jerusalem and in the United States. .
Osteoarthritis is a common, degenerative, joint disease that increases in prevalence
with age. During the disease, the matrix structure comprising cartilage in the joints is
significantly diminished, inflicting severe frictional pain and restricting joint
movement. One reason for this phenomenon is reduced matrix production and gene
expression.
SirT1 is a nuclear enzyme that regulates the expression of many genes through
alterations in chromatin structure. Chromatin is the combination of DNA and other
proteins that make up the contents of the cell nucleus.
In laboratory work carried out at the Laboratory of Cartilage Biology at the Hebrew
University of Jerusalem Faculty of Dental Medicine, researchers headed by Dr. Mona
Dvir-Ginzberg showed that SirT1 positively regulates the expression of many
cartilage-tissue components. Her work was carried out in cooperation with researchers
at the US National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD.
This data, published in the Arthritis and Rheumatism journal, showed that when there
is joint inflammation, SirT1 degenerates and is inactivated, thereby accelerating joint
destruction through altered gene expression.
Understanding these events will enable the design of drug targets to serve as potential
therapies that may retard or reverse OA through possibly boosting SirT1 production.
Additionally, testing of SirT1 levels could serve as an early indicator for OA
susceptibility and thus serve as a signal for beginning timely treatment.
"Developing a combined strategy for diagnosis and treatment, based on these data,
could provide an efficient alternative for joint replacement surgery and enable
susceptible individuals to experience a better quality of life for years to come," said
Dr Dvir-Ginzberg.
(Photo of Dr. Mona Dvir-Ginzberg available via e-mail upon request)
For further information: Jerry Barach, Dept. of Media Relations, the Hebrew University,
Tel: 02-588-2904.
Orit Sulitzeanu, Hebrew University spokesperson, Tel: 054-8820016.