Identification of pathways and genes associated with meniscus degeneration using bioinformatics analyses.

OBJECTIVE

To explore the molecular mechanisms underlying meniscus degeneration.

METHODS

We performed anterior cruciate ligament resection in the Hainan Wuzhishan pig to establish a meniscus degeneration model. We applied gene chip technology to detect differentially expressed genes (DEG) in the degenerative meniscus tissues. We applied Gene Ontology (GO), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway, core gene network, and relevant MicroRNA analyses to identify regulatory networks relevant to meniscus degeneration. We detected 893 differentially expressed genes, mainly involved in hormone production, apoptosis, and inflammation.

RESULTS

We found that MUC13, inflammatory mediator regulation of TRP channels, MDFI, and miR-335-5p may play a key role in the degenerative meniscus tissue.

CONCLUSION

We found that meniscus degeneration involves several molecular mechanisms and provide molecular targets for future research into the disease.