Inhibitors of WNT (DKK3 and FRZB), and antagonists of BMP/TGFβ (CD109, CHRDL2, DCN FMOD, INHBA and THBS1) signalling were decreased or absent in the aged inner region (Figure 5F,G), consistent with the reported upregulation of these pathways in IDD (Hiyama et al., 2010) and its closely related condition osteoarthritis (Leijten et al., 2013). This evidence concerns the gene DCN and intervertebral disk degenerative disorder.