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Life Sciences & Medicine Active Updated Aug 15, 2026

Blocking a single enzyme regrows worn cartilage

Stanford researchers traced age-related cartilage loss to a single enzyme, 15-PGDH, which becomes more abundant with age and interferes with the molecules that repair tissue and calm inflammation. Blocking it regrew cartilage in old mice and prevented arthritis after joint injury in young mice, using the joint's own existing chondrocytes rather than stem cells or an implant. The stakes are whether an enzyme active throughout the body for years can be blocked safely enough to become a real treatment for osteoarthritis.

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  1. Aug 15, 2026 Latest

    Stanford researchers found that blocking the enzyme 15-PGDH regrew already-worn cartilage in old mice and prevented arthritis entirely in young mice given the mouse equivalent of a torn ACL, working through the joint's own existing chondrocytes rather than stem cells, and the team confirmed the same calming, thickening effect on human cartilage taken from patients undergoing knee replacement.

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