A Non-Invasive Method for Generating the Cyclic Loading-Induced Intra-Articular Cartilage Lesion Model of the Rat Knee

Abstract

The pathophysiology of primary osteoarthritis (OA) remains unclear. However, a specific subclassification of OA in relatively younger age groups is likely correlated with a history of articular cartilage damage and ligament avulsion. Surgical animal models of OA of the knee play an important role in understanding the onset and progression of post-traumatic OA and aid in the development of novel therapies for this disease. However, non-surgical models have been recently considered to avoid traumatic inflammation that could affect the evaluation of the intervention.In this study, an intra-articular cartilage lesion rat model induced by in vivo cyclic compressive loading was developed, which allowed researchers to (1) determine the optimal magnitude, speed, and duration of load that could cause focal cartilage damage; (2) assess post-traumatic spatiotemporal pathological changes in chondrocyte vitality; and (3) evaluate the histological expression of destructive or protective molecules that are involved in the adaptation and repair mechanisms against joint compressive loads. This report describes the experimental protocol for this novel cartilage lesion in a rat model.

One session of 20 ​N cyclic compression induces chronic knee osteoarthritis in rats: A long-term study

“…All the rats in the experimental group underwent a single compression session, which included 60 cycles of cyclic loading, during the study. One cycle included a preload of 5 ​N and a peak load of 20 ​N, with an approaching speed of 1 ​mm/s following 10-s rest intervals [ 17 ] ( Fig. 1 B).…”