Heparanase activity is 'dramatically' increased in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and holds promise as a novel treatment target, report scientists.
Rachel Li (Canberra Hospital, Garran, Australia) and co-workers comment that, "although there is much supporting evidence of its angiogenic and pro-metastatic function, the significance of heparanase in arthritic diseases, including RA and osteoarthritis, is largely unclear."
Li and team studied heparanase activity in samples of synovial fluid and tissue taken from patients with RA or osteoarthritis, as well as from generally healthy control volunteers.
As published in the journal Arthritis and Rheumatism, levels of active heparanase enzymes and heparanase messenger RNA were significantly higher in patients with RA, compared with osteoarthritis patients and healthy controls.
The researchers found that heparanase activity in synovial fluid and tissue from patients with RA was 100-times greater than in samples from osteoarthritis patients or controls.
The researchers also note that 39 angiogenesis genes were differentially expressed in the synovium of RA patients compared with controls, with 22 upregulated and 17 downregulated. This differential gene expression correlate significantly with heparanase activity, they report.
Placing their findings into a wider clinical context, the authors suggest that heparanase could be "a reliable prognostic factor for RA progression and an attractive target for the treatment of RA."
http://www.medwire-news.md/437/75523/Bone_Health/Heparanase_an_RA_predictor_and_therapeutic_target.html
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