The presence of micro RNA (miRNA) biomarkers in the blood is correlated to the development of severe osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee or hip, according to new research. [Abstract OP0003]

“The findings indicate that for the first time we will be able to predict the risk of severe osteoarthritis, before the disease starts to significantly impact a person’s life, allowing us to take preventative action early on,” said lead author Dr. Christian Beyer from University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany. “Through the early identification of osteoarthritis we can decrease both the impact of the disease on individuals and the major socio-economic burden severe disease poses.”

The researchers analyzed blood samples from patients with OA over a follow-up period of 15 years, testing for the presence of miRNAs and occurrence of OA. Out of the 816 patients followed, 67 had ≥1 total joint replacement for severe knee or hip OA. The results of serum analyses demonstrated that severe OA was correlated with three miRNA biomarkers known as let-7e, miR-454 and miR-885-5p.

Prevention and early treatment is considered the most effective approach for the management of OA. However, there has been no way to identify severe OA early, when the disease is still clinically silent.

“We need to identify those individuals who are at risk of developing this disease. This is crucially important,” said Beyer. “At the moment, there are no markers or indicators that will show us who is at risk of that and we need to develop biomarkers that can predict the development of this disease.”

However, this new study suggests that three miRNAs could be used as biomarkers to predict severe OA, said Beyer, adding that: “let-7e was our most promising single micro-RNA and we also found a nice correlation between let-7e levels and the number of joint replacement surgeries due to severe OA. We found that the lower those let-7e levels were, the higher was the risk for receiving more than one joint replacement because of severe osteoarthritis of the knee or the hip.”

OA is a common musculoskeletal disorder affecting 10 percent of people worldwide. It is one of the top 10 most disabling diseases in developed countries and a major cause of knee and hip replacements. “Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis and it is a major socioeconomic burden,” said Beyer. “Our study now opens many new questions that need to be addressed by future studies.”