Meds like Ozempic could ease arthritis

Meds like Ozempic could ease arthritis Skip to content Subscribe today Every print subscription comes with full digital access Subscribe Now Menu All Topics Health Humans Anthropology Health & Medicine Archaeology Psychology View All Life Animals Plants Ecosystems Paleontology Neuroscience Genetics Microbes View All Earth Agriculture Climate Oceans Environment View All Physics Materials Science Quantum Physics Particle Physics View All Space Astronomy Planetary Science Cosmology View All Magazine Menu All Stories Multimedia Reviews Puzzles Collections Educator Portal Century of Science Unsung characters Coronavirus Outbreak Newsletters Investors Lab About SN Explores Our Store SIGN IN Donate Home INDEPENDENT JOURNALISM SINCE 1921 SIGN IN Search Open search Close search Home INDEPENDENT JOURNALISM SINCE 1921 All Topics Earth Agriculture Climate Oceans Environment Humans Anthropology Health & Medicine Archaeology Psychology Life Animals Plants Ecosystems Paleontology Neuroscience Genetics Microbes Physics Materials Science Quantum Physics Particle Physics Space Astronomy Planetary Science Cosmology Tech Computing Artificial Intelligence Chemistry Math Science & Society All Topics Health Humans Humans Anthropology Health & Medicine Archaeology Psychology Recent posts in Humans Health & Medicine Meds like Ozempic could ease arthritis By Meghan Rosen10 hours ago Science & Society Project Hail Mary made us wonder how to survive a trip to interstellar space By Tina Hesman Saey12 hours ago Chemistry Machine learning streamlines the complexities of making better proteins By Skyler WareFebruary 19, 2026 Life Life Animals Plants Ecosystems Paleontology Neuroscience Genetics Microbes Recent posts in Life Paleontology A mouth built for efficiency may have helped the earliest bird fly By Jay BennettFebruary 19, 2026 Animals Some dog breeds carry a higher risk of breathing problems By Jake BuehlerFebruary 18, 2026 Animals Regeneration of fins and limbs relies on a shared cellular playbook By Elizabeth PennisiFebruary 18, 2026 Earth Earth Agriculture Climate Oceans Environment Recent posts in Earth Climate Halting irreversible changes to Antarctica depends on choices made today By Carolyn GramlingFebruary 20, 2026 Climate Snowball Earth might have had a dynamic climate and open seas By Michael MarshallFebruary 19, 2026 Oceans Evolution didn’t wait long after the dinosaurs died By Elie DolginFebruary 13, 2026 Physics Physics Materials Science Quantum Physics Particle Physics Recent posts in Physics Physics Physicists dream up ‘spacetime quasicrystals’ that could underpin the universe By Emily ConoverFebruary 17, 2026 Physics A precise proton measurement helps put a core theory of physics to the test By Emily ConoverFebruary 11, 2026 Physics The only U.S. particle collider shuts down – so a new one may rise By Emily ConoverFebruary 6, 2026 Space Space Astronomy Planetary Science Cosmology Recent posts in Space Science & Society Project Hail Mary made us wonder how to survive a trip to interstellar space By Tina Hesman Saey12 hours ago Astronomy This inside-out planetary system has astronomers scratching their heads By Adam MannFebruary 12, 2026 Space Artemis II is returning humans to the moon with science riding shotgun By Lisa GrossmanFebruary 4, 2026 News Health & Medicine Meds like Ozempic could ease arthritis In mice and humans with osteoarthritis, semaglutide appeared to thicken cartilage People with osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint disease, can experience pain and loss of cartilage in the knees. Treatment with the drug semaglutide could rebuild the tissue, a new study suggests. ATHIMA TONGLOOM/GETTY MEDIA By Meghan Rosen 10 hours ago Share this:Share Share via email (Opens in new window) Email Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit Share on X (Opens in new window) X Print (Opens in new window) Print Listen to this article This is a human-written story voiced by AI. Got feedback? Take our survey . (See our AI policy here .) Ozempic’s key ingredient may act directly on cartilage to repair creaky joints. In mice and people, semaglutide can ease symptoms of the joint disease osteoarthritis and thicken the cartilage pillowed between bones, researchers report February 9 in Cell Metabolism. Thicker cartilage suggests the tissue is being rebuilt, says Di Chen, a physician and biologist at Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology in China. “That’s a good thing,” he says. “That’s the key thing.” More cartilage means more cushion, which means less bone-on-bone grinding and less pain. Sign up for our newsletter We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis, affecting more than 500 million people worldwide. The disease can affect the hands, knees, hips and other joints, causing severe pain as cartilage wears away and tissues inflame. There’s no cure, and no medications that prevent it from becoming worse. Doctors can only help patients try to manage pain, Chen says. Scientists think weight loss can help alleviate symptoms by reducing the load on joints. That’s why semaglutide, the smash weight loss drug in Ozempic and Wegovy, is considered a contender for osteoarthritis treatment. And indeed, in 2024, a clinical trial in people with obesity reported that the drug  improved joint pain and function. Doctors assumed those benefits were due to weight loss, Chen says. His team wasn’t so sure. The researchers conducted a similar study in mice with a form of osteoarthritis. One group received semaglutide, the other did not. In the drug-free mice, Chen’s team restricted food intake to match that of the semaglutide group. Both groups shed weight, but only the treated mice saw joint-based benefits. These mice had less pain, less broken-down cartilage and more cartilage growth, the team found. The results suggest that weight loss isn’t driving semaglutide’s benefits. Chen’s team saw echoes of those results in a small clinical trial in obese people with knee osteoarthritis. After six months on a low dose of semaglutide plus hyaluronic acid, a lubricant made by the body, participants’ knee function improved. This could be due to plumped-up cartilage. MRI exams revealed a 17 percent increase in cartilage thickness in people on semaglutide. That’s compared with a less than 1 percent increase in people on just hyaluronic acid. Chen’s trial included 20 people; a larger study could help confirm the results. Now, his team wants to puzzle out how semaglutide affects the joints. He has a few hints. Lab experiments suggest the drug scales up energy production in cartilage. That could give the tissue more fuel to heal, Chen says. Questions or comments on this article? E-mail us at feedback@sciencenews.org | Reprints FAQ Citations H. Qin et al. Semaglutide ameliorates osteoarthritis progression through a