Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying human cartilage degeneration and regeneration is helpful for improving therapeutic strategies for treating osteoarthritis (OA). Here, we report the molecular programmes and lineage progression patterns controlling human OA pathogenesis using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq).
We performed unbiased transcriptome-wide scRNA-seq analysis, computational analysis and histological assays on 1464 chondrocytes from 10 patients with OA undergoing knee arthroplasty surgery. We investigated the relationship between transcriptional programmes of the OA landscape and clinical outcome using severity index and correspondence analysis.
We identified seven molecularly defined populations of chondrocytes in the human OA cartilage, including three novel phenotypes with distinct functions. We presented gene expression profiles at different OA stages at single-cell resolution. We found a potential transition among proliferative chondrocytes, prehypertrophic chondrocytes and hypertrophic chondrocytes (HTCs) and defined a new subdivision within HTCs. We revealed novel markers for cartilage progenitor cells (CPCs) and demonstrated a relationship between CPCs and fibrocartilage chondrocytes using computational analysis. Notably, we derived predictive targets with respect to clinical outcomes and clarified the role of different cell types for the early diagnosis and treatment of OA.
Our results provide new insights into chondrocyte taxonomy and present potential clues for effective and functional manipulation of human OA cartilage regeneration that could lead to improved health.

Quanbo Ji

Yuxuan Zheng

Guoqiang Zhang

Yuqiong Hu

Xiaoying Fan

Yu Hou

Lu Wen

Li Li

Yameng Xu

Yan Wang

Fuchou Tang

Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases

风湿病年鉴 (ARD) 是一份国际同行评审期刊，致力于促进最高标准的科学交流和教育。它涵盖了风湿病学的所有方面，包括肌肉骨骼疾病、关节炎疾病和结缔组织疾病的谱系。 ARD 发表基础、临床和转化科学研究。鼓励简明的科学交流，并以同行评审的国际会议论文集为特色。教育论文包括最先进的评论、“如何”文章和教育案例，重点关注临床实践中面临的问题。该杂志于 1939 年首次出版，拥有权威的全球编辑委员会和不断增长的国际读者群。

The Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (ARD) is an international peer-reviewed journal dedicated to promoting the highest standards of scientific communication and education. It covers all aspects of rheumatology, including musculoskeletal disorders, arthritic diseases, and connective tissue diseases. ARD publishes basic, clinical, and translational scientific research, encouraging concise scientific communication and featuring peer-reviewed conference proceedings. Educational papers include cutting-edge reviews, 'how-to' articles, and educational cases, focusing on issues faced in clinical practice. Since its first publication in 1939, the journal has maintained a prestigious global editorial board and a growing international readership.

《Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases》（风湿病年鉴，ARD）是一份国际同行评审的学术期刊，旨在促进高标准的科学交流与教育。期刊涵盖风湿病学的各个方面，包括肌肉骨骼疾病、关节炎和结缔组织疾病等。ARD发表基础研究、临床研究和转化科学研究，鼓励简洁明了的科学交流，并定期刊登国际会议的同行评审论文。教育类论文包括前沿评论、实用指南和教育案例，重点关注临床实践中遇到的问题。该杂志自1939年创刊以来，拥有权威的全球编辑委员会和不断扩大的国际读者群。

Category	Quartile
医学	1
医学, 风湿病学	1

Single-cell RNA-seq analysis reveals the progression of human osteoarthritis

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