The Times - UK (2022-01-13)

20 Thursday January 13 2022 | the times

News

Millions of people with arthritis have
been offered hope after scientists found
a way to regrow cartilage using a mesh
that generates a tiny electric current.
The procedure has so far only been
carried out successfully in rabbits, but
researchers said their study proved that
it was possible to implant a biodegrada-
ble “scaffold” that generates its own
electricity to stimulate the regrowth of
damaged cartilage.
Cartilage acts as a shock absorber,
covering the surfaces of our joints and
allowing our bones to slide over each
other. With osteoarthritis, the most
common form of arthritis affecting 8.
million people in Britain, this cartilage
breaks down, causing pain, swelling
and problems with movement.
A study in the Science Translational
Medicine journal said that most treat-
ments focused on relieving pain rather

Analysis of data from the largest survey
yet of transgender adults found that
those who began gender-affirming
hormone treatment before their 18th
birthday had fewer thoughts of suicide,
were less likely to experience serious

Electric current could spark a

recovery in arthritis sufferers

Kaya Burgess Science Reporter than curing the condition. It added that
surgeons could use transplanted carti-
lage from elsewhere in the body, but
there could be complications.
Researchers explained that synthetic
scaffolds, a form of artificial mesh im-
planted for new cartilage cells to grow
on, “easily break down under repeated
joint forces”, while the body’s immune
system can also cause complications.
Scientists at the University of Con-
necticut said that cartilage was “sensi-
tive to electrical stimulation”, which
can promote the growth of new cells.
Negative charges can promote the at-
traction and absorption of the proteins
needed for tissue regrowth, they added.
However, inserting batteries into
joints is invasive and can be toxic. There
are crystals in nature which, when
squeezed, act like tiny batteries. Apply-
ing pressure to the crystals causes a
positive electric charge to build up on
one side and a negative charge to build

upon the other side, generating an al-

ternating current voltage. This is called

piezoelectricity.

Researchers made a mesh made out

of “poly-L lactic acid” PLLA, a biode-

gradable material often used to stitch

up wounds. It has piezoelectric proper-

ties. When used within a joint affected

by osteoarthritis, the material gener-

ates a weak but steady electric field as it

is squeezed in regular use of the joint.

The study found that this “improved

chondrogenesis [the formation of new

cartilage] and cartilage regeneration”

both in a laboratory and in live animals.

Rabbits with serious cartilage defects

had the scaffold implanted into their

knees and experienced “completely

healed cartilage” within three months

of surgery, the study noted.

Thanh Nguyen, a bioengineer at the

University of Connecticut said: “This is

a fascinating result, but we need to test

this in a larger animal.”

Health benefits of teenage transitions

mental health disorders and had fewer

problems with substance abuse than

those who started hormones as adults.

There was better mental health for

those who had received hormones at

any age compared with those who

wanted but never received treatment.

The research analysed data from the

2015 US Transgender Survey which in-

volved responses from 27,715 transgen-

der people. Participants, who were at

least 18 when surveyed, completed ex-

tensive questionnaires about their lives.

The study was carried out by Stan-

ford University and published in the

peer-reviewed journal PLOS ONE.

Katie Gibbons

T

he Royal

Shakespeare

Company is

taking its

troupe on a

cruise with the Bard

(David Sanderson

writes).

Transatlantic

passengers are to be

treated to premieres of

new RSC plays, acting

workshops and digital

exhibitions, as well as

a rolling roster of

Shakespeare

productions in the on-

board cinema.

The Tempest, with

its shipwrecks, is not

thought to be a

priority to perform.

However, a new

RSC production,

Boundless as the Sea,

is due to be given

public outings on

Queen Mary 2 this

year, along with a

version of Miss

Littlewood, based on

the life of the

influential theatre

director Joan

Littlewood.

Erica Whyman, the

company’s acting

artistic director, said

the partnership with

Cunard cruises had a

“perfect synergy”,

adding: “The RSC

ignites imaginations

and expands horizons

and Shakespeare’s

plays allow us to

imagine new and

remarkable worlds.”

The three-year

Tempest tossed?

RSC goes to sea