Card
Series GSE176308 Query DataSets for GSE176308
Status Public on Oct 20, 2021
Title Identification of distinct synovial fibroblast subsets associated with pain and progression of knee osteoarthritis using single-cell RNA sequencing
Organism Homo sapiens
Experiment type Expression profiling by high throughput sequencing
Summary Synovial inflammation is associated with pain severity in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). The aim here was to determine in a population with knee OA, whether synovial tissue from areas associated with pain exhibited different synovial fibroblast subsets, compared to synovial tissue from sites not associated with pain. A further aim was to compare differences between early and end-stage disease synovial fibroblast subsets. Parapatellar synovitis was significantly associated with the pattern of patient-reported pain in knee OA patients. Synovial tissue from sites of patient-reported pain exhibited a differential transcriptomic phenotype, with distinct synovial fibroblast subsets in early OA and end-stage OA. Functional pathway analysis revealed that synovial tissue and fibroblast subsets from painful sites promoted fibrosis, inflammation and the growth and activity of neurons. The secretome of fibroblasts from early OA painful sites induced neurite outgrowth in dorsal root ganglion neurons. Sites of patient-reported pain in knee OA is associated with a different synovial tissue phenotype and distinct synovial fibroblast subsets. Further interrogation of these fibroblast pathotypes will increase our understanding of the role of synovitis in OA joint pain and provide a rationale for the therapeutic targeting of fibroblast subsets to alleviate pain in patients.
 
Overall design Patients with early knee OA (n=29) and end-stage knee OA (n=22) were recruited. Patient reported pain was recorded by questionnaire and using an anatomical knee pain map. Proton density fat suppressed MRI axial and sagittal sequences were analysed and scored for synovitis. Synovial tissue was obtained from the medial and lateral parapatellar and suprapatellar sites. Fibroblast single cell RNA sequencing was performed using Chromium 10X and analysed using Seurat. Transcriptomes were functionally characterised using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis and the effect of fibroblast secretome on neuronal growth assessed using rat DRG.
 
Contributor(s) Nanus DE, Badoume A, Wijesinghe SN, Halsey AM, Hurley P, Ahmed Z, Botchu R, Davis ET, Lindsay MA, Jones SW
Citation(s)
  • Nanus DE, Badoume A, Wijesinghe SN, Halsey AM et al. Synovial tissue from sites of joint pain in knee osteoarthritis patients exhibits a differential phenotype with distinct fibroblast subsets. EBioMedicine 2021 Oct;72:103618. PMID: 34628351
Submission date Jun 07, 2021
Last update date Oct 22, 2021
Contact name Amel Badoume
Organization name University of Bath
Department Pharmacy and Pharamcology
Street address Claverton Down
City Bath
ZIP/Postal code BA2 7AY
Country United Kingdom
 
Platforms (1)
GPL18573 Illumina NextSeq 500 (Homo sapiens)