Piezoelectricity in the Intervertebral disc

Electrical Stimulation-Mediated Tissue Healing in Porcine Intervertebral Disc Under Mechanically Dynamic Organ Culture Conditions

“…Charging the NP of the disc enhances the negatively charged proteoglycans and the disc's natural pumping function. Poillot et al 15 showed that the mechanical loading of an IVD is inherently connected to the electrical potential in the NP and AF tissues. Thus, a healthy IVD during normal motion is supplied with electric potentials that may work in conjunction to support the intake of nutrients through membranes as well as affect the stiffness of the tissue 48 .…”

“…There is, however strong support for applying electric stimulation directly to piezoelectric tissues, such as the IVD, for the purpose of tissue regeneration and pain reduction. 15,21 In this study, a proprietary DisCure treatment was used to apply electrical stimulation to damaged discs to promote tissue regeneration. Our aim was to investigate the effect of electrostimulation directly on ex vivo NP tissue.…”

“…However, to the knowledge of the authors at this time, the in vivo studies do not assess the expression of both pro- and antiinflammatory markers, nor do they insert the electrode directly into the NP, opting instead to study the effects of interstitial electric stimulation. There is, however strong support for applying electric stimulation directly to piezoelectric tissues, such as the IVD, for the purpose of tissue regeneration and pain reduction 15,21 …”

“…12,13 In damaged IVDs, nutrition flow is interrupted which leads to degenerative disc disease. 14 Poillot et al 15 showed that mechanical loading of an IVD is inherently connected to the electrical potential in the NP and AF tissues.…”

Electro‐Stimulation, a Promising Therapeutic Treatment Modality for Tissue Repair: Emerging Roles of Sulfated Glycosaminoglycans as Electro‐Regulatory Mediators of Intrinsic Repair Processes

“…Piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) has recently been used to measure deformation of the IVD and induction of piezoelectric effects, for the first time, by physical deformation of this structure. [ 144 ] Piezoelectric effects were greater in the AF than in the NP, owing to its organised collagenous lamellar networks. Voltage generated longitudinal piezoelectric effects in vivo of ≈1 nV were measured.…”