The relationship between ultra-short telomeres, aging of articular cartilage and the development of human hip osteoarthritis.

Introduction: Ultra-short telomeres caused by stress-induced telomere shortening are suggested to induce chondrocyte senescence in human osteoarthritic knees. Here we have further investigated the role of ultra-short telomeres in the development of osteoarthritis (OA) and in aging of articular cartilage in human hips.

Materials And Methods: Cartilage was obtained from four different distances of the central weight-bearing area in human femoral heads (14 OA and 9 non-OA).