Using single-cell RNA sequencing in mouse models, researchers discovered that in subjects with posttraumatic osteoarthritis after joint trauma, synovial fibroblasts “assumed distinct functional identities…. Prg4^hi lining fibroblasts secrete Rspo2 that may drive pathological joint crosstalk after injury,” according to findings published by Knights et al in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. The scientists involved in the research now hope that targeting these cells may be a potential avenue for treatment of osteoarthritis, which may be used after a traumatic injury to slow down or totally stop the development of posttraumatic osteoarthritis. Tristan Maerz, PhD, a biomedical engineer and Assistant Professor in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Michigan Medicine, oversees the laboratory participating in this research, and alongside colleagues from Vanderbilt University, is working on drug delivery systems for the condition. According to a press release from Michigan Medicine, “The Maerz Laboratory has been awarded a $2.5 million grant by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases to develop and test a biomaterial-based drug delivery system to treat osteoarthritis.”