The utilization of the OmniSearch semantic search tool to explore various microRNA regulation mechanisms in osteoarthritis

摘要

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common joint disease worldwide, resulting in severe joint pain and significantly decreased life quality in the elderly population. Due to the lack of effective medicine that can reverse the degeneration of articular cartilage, ultimately all OA patients need to receive an artificial joint replacement surgery. Although the pathogenesis and progression of OA has attracted a lot research activities, most regulation mechanisms at genetic and genomics level have not yet been completely understood. In this paper, we introduce the utilization of OmniSearch, a semantic search software tool, to facilitate the exploration of important roles performed by numerous microRNA molecules on OA disease process. Our promising experimental results have indicated that the methodologies described in this paper are able to help effectively unraveling critical microRNA regulation mechanisms. Consequently, we can facilitate clinical investigators' efforts in the understanding of OA pathogenesis, and thus contributing to early diagnosis and effective treatment in OA in the future.