RRC ID 36002
Author Kwok J, Onuma H, Olmer M, Lotz MK, Grogan SP, D'Lima DD.
Title Histopathological analyses of murine menisci: implications for joint aging and osteoarthritis.
Journal Osteoarthritis Cartilage
Abstract OBJECTIVE:To establish a standardized protocol for histopathological assessment of murine menisci that can be applied to evaluate transgenic, knock-out/in, and surgically induced OA models.
METHODS:Knee joints from C57BL/6J mice (6-36 months) as well as from mice with surgically-induced OA were processed and cut into sagittal sections. All sections included the anterior and posterior horns of the menisci and were graded for (1) surface integrity, (2) cellularity, (3) Safranin-O staining distribution and intensity. Articular cartilage in the knee joints was also scored.
RESULTS:The new histopathological grading system showed good inter- and intra-class correlation coefficients. The major age-related changes in murine menisci in the absence of OA included decreased Safranin O staining intensity, abnormal cell distribution and the appearance of acellular areas. Menisci from mice with surgically-induced OA showed severe fibrillations, partial/total loss of tissue, and calcifications. Abnormal cell arrangements included both regional hypercellularity and hypocellularity along with hypertrophy and cell clusters. In general, the posterior horns were less affected by age and OA.
CONCLUSION:A new standardized protocol and histopathological grading system has been developed and validated to allow for a comprehensive, systematic evaluation of changes in aging and OA-affected murine menisci. This system was developed to serve as a standardized technique and tool for further studies in murine meniscal pathophysiology models.
Volume 24(4)
Pages 709-18
Published 2016-4-1
DOI 10.1016/j.joca.2015.11.006
PII S1063-4584(15)01387-4
PMID 26585241
PMC PMC4799761
MeSH Aging / pathology* Animals Arthritis, Experimental / pathology* Cartilage, Articular / pathology Female Male Menisci, Tibial / pathology* Mice, Inbred C57BL Mice, Transgenic Osteoarthritis / pathology* Reproducibility of Results Severity of Illness Index
IF 4.793
Times Cited 15
WOS Category ORTHOPEDICS RHEUMATOLOGY
Resource
Mice RBRC00806