Objective To review the progress of mechanism of parathyroid hormone (PTH) and parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) on normal and osteoarthritis (OA) cartilage and subchondral bones. Methods Recent 1iterature about the effects of PTH and PTHrP on normal and OA cartilage was reviewed. Results PTH and PTHrP can repress the hypertrophic differentiation and apoptosis of chondrocytes and promote their prol iferation, which has a protection effect on chondrocytes of OA; osteoblasts from subchondral bone of OA show a decreased reaction to PTH. Conclusion PTHand PTHrP may delay and protect the progression of OA, which involves in regulating cartilage degeneration and subchondral bone remodl ing through many kinds of signal pathway.