Identifying Metabolic Differences in The Synovial Fluid of Males and Females Affected by Osteoarthritis
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Authors
Kiki, Bourekis
Date of Issue
2024
Type
Thesis
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 also 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 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 provides a greater understanding of metabolism in OA pathogenesis and suggests 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 and amino acid metabolism in OA responses.