Older mice grew thicker cartilage after Stanford researchers blocked a protein that drives cartilage breakdown, a result the team says could point to a new way to repair knee damage.
The finding suggests future treatment might come through a simple injection or oral medicine rather than surgery, if the approach can be translated from mice to humans.
Helen Blau and Nidhi Bhutani led the study, with Blau calling the cartilage regrowth “remarkable” and potentially relevant to a large unmet need in human knee pain.
If confirmed in people, the approach could reduce the number of patients needing knee and hip replacements by restoring worn cartilage before joints deteriorate further.