Identifying Metabolic Differences in Male and Female Synovial Fluid Affected by Osteoarthritis
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Authors
Bourekis, Kiki
Date of Issue
2024
Type
Presentation
Language
en_US
Subject Keywords
Other Titles
Abstract
Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common joint disease in the body, characterized by limited mobility due to the degradation of cartilage. Age, weight, and genetic profiles have been identified as clear risk factors for OA; women are more likely to suffer from OA compared to men. While previous research indicates that postmenopausal women have an increased likelihood of developing OA due to decreasing estrogen, few studies have investigated metabolic differences between diseased males and females. This study seeks to understand the differences between the global metabolic profiles of males and females with OA. In order to investigate metabolic discrepancies, metabolites were extracted from joint-effusion-related OA synovial fluid. Global metabolomic profiling by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was then employed to identify significant metabolic differences between sexes. The results of this study suggested a distinct metabolic response to OA in males and females, most notably a significant difference between fatty acid and amino acid metabolism. This study provided a greater understanding of metabolism in OA pathogenesis and suggested opportunities for more individualized, therapeutic interventions that target sex differences. In the future, researchers should replicate this experiment with a larger sample size and employ targeted metabolomics to further elucidate the role of fatty acid metabolism in OA responses.