Osteoarthritis and chondrosarcoma: Bioinformatics analysis based on single-cell RNA sequencing and molecular docking

BACKGROUND: Osteoarthritis (OA) and chondrosarcoma (CHS) are joint-disabling diseases that differ in their clinical manifestations, pathobiological mechanisms and management strategies. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to investigate the cellular heterogeneity and molecular mechanisms underlying osteoarthritis and CHS using single-cell RNA sequencing and molecular docking approaches, with the goal of identifying potential therapeutic targets. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Publicly available single-cell RNA sequencing datasets for osteoarthritis and CHS were retrieved for detailed analysis. The t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding method (t-SNE) and the uniform manifold approximation and projection (UMAP) method were used to visualize cellular clustering, and differential expression analyses were performed to evaluate key genes across distinct cell populations. Additionally, we conducted a computational study, including molecular docking of the DAP3 protein with the natural compounds curcumin and resveratrol, to assess their potential as therapeutic agents. RESULTS: We identified significant differences in the distribution of cell subpopulations and gene expression profiles between OA and CHS. Only selected cell subgroups - including neurons, chondrocytes and immune cells - exhibited tissue-specific expression differences in disease-associated genes. In silico molecular docking demonstrated that curcumin and resveratrol can bind to the DAP3 protein suggesting a potential molecular basis for developing novel therapeutic strategies. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides detailed single-cell insights into OA and CHS and identifies potential therapeutic targets. These findings not only deepen our understanding of the cellular and molecular features of these diseases but also highlight promising avenues for future therapeutic development.