ATTENUATION OF SURGICALLY-INDUCED OSTEOARTHRITIS (OA) BY INHIBITION OF AUTOTAXIN

Purpose: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic, progressive joint disease leading to a poor quality of life. Previously, we have reported that selected Lysophoshatidylcholines (lysoPCs) are increased in animal models of OA (Datta et al., 2017, PMID: 28811491). We also identified that these particular metabolites may promote OA pathogenesis in an autotaxin (ATX) - dependent manner. ATX is an enzyme responsible for the conversion of lysoPC to the inflammatory mediator lysophosphatidic acid (LPA). Previous studies have also shown that ATX levels in plasma and synovial fluid correlate with the severity of knee osteoarthritis (Mabey et al.