Abstract
Scientists at Penn State College of Medicine have found that the antidepressant paroxetine can halt the progression of osteoarthritis and regenerate damaged cartilage in the joints of mice.
The team's study, published in Science Translational Medicine, found that paroxetine inhibited GRK2, an enzyme found at high levels in both human tissue and mouse models of the disease which acts to promote cartilage damage.
Previously, the researchers found that elevated expression and activity of GRK2 leads to pathologic cell growth in the heart and kidney, which also occurs in osteoarthritis.
Using paroxetine to inhibit GRK2 slowed the development of osteoarthritis in mice and promoted cartilage healing.
The findings suggest paroxetine could represent the first-ever disease-modifying treatment for osteoarthritis, and also indicate that other compounds that counteract abnormal activity in cartilage-maintaining cells could be repurposed into therapies for the disease.