Lay summary
Osteoarthritis affects ~670,000 New Zealanders. Women are more susceptible than men, however, the reasons for this are incompletely understood. Disease results in loss of the cartilage cushion within joints. One of the major causes of this is excess cartilage degradation by cartilage cells. We have found that there are profound differences in cartilage cells from males compared to females and our preliminary data indicates that what causes excessive cartilage degradation by female cartilage cells is not the same as what causes excessive degradation by male cartilage cells. By studying cartilage cells obtained from patients with osteoarthritis, this study will determine differences in the sensitivity and responsiveness of male and female cells to disease-associated factors. This will provide insight into what causes cartilage loss in males compared to females and how best to treat osteoarthritis, implying that the most effective treatment strategy differs for males compared to females.