Abstract:

Osteoarthritis （OA） is a prevalent chronic degenerative disease in clinical practice， posing significant health threats while lacking specific effective treatments. In recent years， an increasing number of small molecules derived from traditional Chinese medicine have been utilized in experimental studies and clinical treatment of OA. The utilization of these small molecules aligns to a certain extent with traditional Chinese medical theories related to OA treatment. Moreover， due to their well?defined chemical structures and the reproducibility of their effects， along with relatively well?understood mechanisms， these compounds are gaining growing attention in the fields of OA research and clinical practice. To advance this field's development， this article systematically reviews the therapeutic efficacy and underlying mechanisms of various small molecules used for treating OA including curcumin， atractylenolide， resveratrol etc.， aiming to provide relevant background information and insights for researchers and clinicians.

Key words: osteoarthritis, curcumin, atractylenolide, resveratrol