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Volume 27
Issue 11
10.3390/ijms27114905
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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Targeting Osteoporosis-Osteoarthritis Comorbidity: Multi-Omics Identification of SON and Exploration of Therapeutic Agents

by
Kunlong Jiang
1,†,
Jun Du
2,†,
Peng Yang
1,
Liyun Lin
1,
Jiachen Liu
1,
Yusen Qiao
1,
Huilin Yang
1,
Dechun Geng
1,* and
Kun Li
1,*
1
Department of Orthopedic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, No. 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou 215000, China
2
Department of Orthopedic Magnetic Resonance Chamber, The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, No. 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou 215000, China
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27(11), 4905; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27114905 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 1 March 2026 / Revised: 21 April 2026 / Accepted: 15 May 2026 / Published: 28 May 2026
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 25th Anniversary of IJMS: Updates and Advances in Molecular Pathology, Diagnostics, and Therapeutics)
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Abstract

Osteoporosis (OP) and osteoarthritis (OA) frequently coexist in the elderly, yet shared molecular pathways remain unclear. We employed weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), independent cohort differential verification, and integration of multiple datasets to explore the association between the two diseases and identify the hub genes. Then, through Mendelian randomization and single-cell sequencing methods, we confirmed that SON might be the key protein linking these two diseases and a promising therapeutic target for comorbidity. Additionally, this study utilized the FDA drug database for virtual screening to evaluate the potential of SON protein as a drug target. Nilotinib, with a high docking score, was listed as a candidate drug. Overall, our findings suggest that SON may play a protective role in the comorbidity of OP and OA, but further functional studies are required to confirm its causal role. Moreover, Nilotinib shows inhibitory effects on osteoclast differentiation and targets SON in vitro, indicating its potential as a candidate drug for further investigation.
Keywords: osteoporosis; osteoarthritis; targeted therapy osteoporosis; osteoarthritis; targeted therapy
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MDPI and ACS Style

Jiang, K.; Du, J.; Yang, P.; Lin, L.; Liu, J.; Qiao, Y.; Yang, H.; Geng, D.; Li, K. Targeting Osteoporosis-Osteoarthritis Comorbidity: Multi-Omics Identification of SON and Exploration of Therapeutic Agents. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27, 4905. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27114905

AMA Style

Jiang K, Du J, Yang P, Lin L, Liu J, Qiao Y, Yang H, Geng D, Li K. Targeting Osteoporosis-Osteoarthritis Comorbidity: Multi-Omics Identification of SON and Exploration of Therapeutic Agents. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2026; 27(11):4905. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27114905

Chicago/Turabian Style

Jiang, Kunlong, Jun Du, Peng Yang, Liyun Lin, Jiachen Liu, Yusen Qiao, Huilin Yang, Dechun Geng, and Kun Li. 2026. "Targeting Osteoporosis-Osteoarthritis Comorbidity: Multi-Omics Identification of SON and Exploration of Therapeutic Agents" International Journal of Molecular Sciences 27, no. 11: 4905. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27114905

APA Style

Jiang, K., Du, J., Yang, P., Lin, L., Liu, J., Qiao, Y., Yang, H., Geng, D., & Li, K. (2026). Targeting Osteoporosis-Osteoarthritis Comorbidity: Multi-Omics Identification of SON and Exploration of Therapeutic Agents. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 27(11), 4905. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27114905

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