The Role of Sclerostin in Rheumatic Diseases: A Review

Systemic connective tissue disorders constitute a heterogenous group of autoimmune diseases with the potential to affect a range of organs. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, progressive, autoimmune inflammatory disease affecting the joints. Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) may manifest with multiple system involvement as a result of inflammatory response to autoantibodies. Spondyloarthropathies (SpAs) such as ankylosing spondylitis (AS) or psoriatic arthritis (PsA) are diseases characterised by the inflammation of spinal joints, paraspinal tissues, peripheral joints and enthesitis as well as inflammatory changes in many other systems and organs. Physiologically, sclerostin helps to maintain balance in bone tissue metabolism through the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway, which represents a major intracellular signalling pathway. This review article aims to present the current knowledge on the role of sclerostin in the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway and its correlation with clinical data from RA, SLE, AS and PsA patients.