Musculoskeletal Research Group, Institute of Cellular Medicine, 4th Floor Cookson Building, Medical School, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK.
Musculoskeletal Research Group, Institute of Cellular Medicine, 4th Floor Cookson Building, Medical School, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK.
Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2012 May;20(5):339-349. doi: 10.1016/j.joca.2011.12.012. Epub 2012 Jan 10.
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a complex multifactorial disease with a strong genetic component. Several studies have suggested or identified epigenetic events that may play a role in OA progression and the gene expression changes observed in diseased cartilage. The aim of this review is to inform about current research in epigenetics and epigenetics in OA. Epigenetic mechanisms include DNA methylation, histone modifications, and microRNAs. Collectively, these enable the cell to respond quickly to environmental changes and can be inherited during cell division. However, aberrant epigenetic modifications are associated with a number of pathological conditions, including OA. Advancements in epigenetic research suggests that global analysis of such modifications in OA are now possible, however, with the exception of microRNAs, it will be a significant challenge to demonstrate how such events impact on the disease.
骨关节炎（OA）是一种复杂的多因素疾病，具有很强的遗传成分。有几项研究表明或确定了表观遗传事件可能在 OA 进展和病变软骨中观察到的基因表达变化中起作用。本综述的目的是介绍 OA 中表观遗传学和表观遗传学的当前研究。表观遗传机制包括 DNA 甲基化、组蛋白修饰和 microRNAs。总的来说，这些机制使细胞能够快速响应环境变化，并在细胞分裂过程中遗传。然而，异常的表观遗传修饰与许多病理状况有关，包括 OA。表观遗传学研究的进展表明，现在可以对 OA 中的此类修饰进行全面分析，但是，除了 microRNAs 之外，证明这些事件如何影响疾病将是一项重大挑战。
