Whereas ZIP8 over-expression in mouse cartilage tissue causes osteoarthritis—another form of inflammatory disease—osteoarthritis is suppressed in chondrocyte-specific conditional Slc39a8(−/−) knockout mice, with concomitant decreases in Zn2+ influx and matrix-degrading enzymes in chondrocytes [32]. This evidence concerns the gene SLC39A8 and osteoarthritis.