Pathophysiology of Myopenia in rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a prevalent and debilitating inflammatory disease that significantly impairs functional capacity and quality of life. RA accelerates musculoskeletal aging, leading to complications such as muscle degeneration and sarcopenia. Recent research has identified myopen...

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Main Authors: Haiming Jin, Gang Wang, Qichen Lu, Jessica Rawlins, Junchun Chen, Saanya Kashyap, Oscar Charlesworth, Dan Xu, Lie Dai, Sipin Zhu, Jiake Xu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Publishing Group 2025-06-01
Series:Bone Research
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41413-025-00438-9
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author Haiming Jin
Gang Wang
Qichen Lu
Jessica Rawlins
Junchun Chen
Saanya Kashyap
Oscar Charlesworth
Dan Xu
Lie Dai
Sipin Zhu
Jiake Xu
author_facet Haiming Jin
Gang Wang
Qichen Lu
Jessica Rawlins
Junchun Chen
Saanya Kashyap
Oscar Charlesworth
Dan Xu
Lie Dai
Sipin Zhu
Jiake Xu
author_sort Haiming Jin
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a prevalent and debilitating inflammatory disease that significantly impairs functional capacity and quality of life. RA accelerates musculoskeletal aging, leading to complications such as muscle degeneration and sarcopenia. Recent research has identified myopenia as a condition of significant muscle loss associated with illness, distinct from the muscle wasting seen in other chronic diseases like cancer cachexia or heart failure. In RA, myopenia is characterized by muscle depletion without concurrent significant fat loss, and it can affect individuals of all ages. While inflammation plays a central role, it is not the sole factor contributing to the high incidence of muscle wasting in RA. In subsequent discussions, secondary sarcopenia will be considered alongside myopenia, as both involve muscle wasting decline primarily due to disease. This review summarizes recent findings on the impact of RA-related myopenia and secondary sarcopenia on functional capacity, explores its underlying mechanisms, and discusses contemporary strategies to mitigate the process of musculoskeletal aging in RA patients.
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spelling doaj-art-69898091f52644c7babb87d5f1420f2a2025-08-20T02:10:34ZengNature Publishing GroupBone Research2095-62312025-06-0113111510.1038/s41413-025-00438-9Pathophysiology of Myopenia in rheumatoid arthritisHaiming Jin0Gang Wang1Qichen Lu2Jessica Rawlins3Junchun Chen4Saanya Kashyap5Oscar Charlesworth6Dan Xu7Lie Dai8Sipin Zhu9Jiake Xu10Department of Orthopaedics, The Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children’s Hospital of Wenzhou Medical UniversityShenzhen University of Advanced Sciences, and Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Sciences Chinese Academy of SciencesDepartment of Orthopaedics, The Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children’s Hospital of Wenzhou Medical UniversitySchool of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Western AustraliaShenzhen University of Advanced Sciences, and Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Sciences Chinese Academy of SciencesSchool of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Western AustraliaSchool of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Western AustraliaSchool of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Western AustraliaDepartment of Rheumatology and Immunology, Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen UniversityDepartment of Orthopaedics, The Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children’s Hospital of Wenzhou Medical UniversityDepartment of Orthopaedics, The Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children’s Hospital of Wenzhou Medical UniversityAbstract Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a prevalent and debilitating inflammatory disease that significantly impairs functional capacity and quality of life. RA accelerates musculoskeletal aging, leading to complications such as muscle degeneration and sarcopenia. Recent research has identified myopenia as a condition of significant muscle loss associated with illness, distinct from the muscle wasting seen in other chronic diseases like cancer cachexia or heart failure. In RA, myopenia is characterized by muscle depletion without concurrent significant fat loss, and it can affect individuals of all ages. While inflammation plays a central role, it is not the sole factor contributing to the high incidence of muscle wasting in RA. In subsequent discussions, secondary sarcopenia will be considered alongside myopenia, as both involve muscle wasting decline primarily due to disease. This review summarizes recent findings on the impact of RA-related myopenia and secondary sarcopenia on functional capacity, explores its underlying mechanisms, and discusses contemporary strategies to mitigate the process of musculoskeletal aging in RA patients.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41413-025-00438-9
spellingShingle Haiming Jin
Gang Wang
Qichen Lu
Jessica Rawlins
Junchun Chen
Saanya Kashyap
Oscar Charlesworth
Dan Xu
Lie Dai
Sipin Zhu
Jiake Xu
Pathophysiology of Myopenia in rheumatoid arthritis
Bone Research
title Pathophysiology of Myopenia in rheumatoid arthritis
title_full Pathophysiology of Myopenia in rheumatoid arthritis
title_fullStr Pathophysiology of Myopenia in rheumatoid arthritis
title_full_unstemmed Pathophysiology of Myopenia in rheumatoid arthritis
title_short Pathophysiology of Myopenia in rheumatoid arthritis
title_sort pathophysiology of myopenia in rheumatoid arthritis
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41413-025-00438-9
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