Synovial tissue research: a state-of-the-art review

Carl Orr, Elsa Sousa, David L. Boyle, Maya H. Buch, Christopher D. Buckley, Juan D. Cañete, Anca I. Catrina, Ernest H. S. Choy, Paul Emery, Ursula Fearon, Andrew Filer, Danielle Gerlag, Frances Humby, John D. Isaacs, Søren A. Just, Bernard R. Lauwerys, Benoit Le Goff, Antonio Manzo, Trudy McGarry, Iain B. McInnesAurélie Najm, Constantino Pitzalis, Arthur Pratt, Malcolm Smith, Paul P. Tak, Rogier Thurlings, Sander W. Tas, João E. Fonseca, Douglas J. Veale

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articleAcademicpeer-review

160 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The synovium is the major target tissue of inflammatory arthritides such as rheumatoid arthritis. The study of synovial tissue has advanced considerably throughout the past few decades from arthroplasty and blind needle biopsy to the use of arthroscopic and ultrasonographic technologies that enable easier visualization and improve the reliability of synovial biopsies. Rapid progress has been made in using synovial tissue to study disease pathogenesis, to stratify patients, to discover biomarkers and novel targets, and to validate therapies, and this progress has been facilitated by increasingly diverse and sophisticated analytical and technological approaches. In this Review, we describe these approaches, and summarize how their use in synovial tissue research has improved our understanding of rheumatoid arthritis and identified candidate biomarkers that could be used in disease diagnosis and stratification, as well as in predicting disease course and treatment response
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)463-475
JournalNature reviews. Rheumatology
Volume13
Issue number8
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2017

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