What are the validated animal models for tendinopathy?

Abstract

Chronic tendinopathy refers to a broad spectrum of pathological conditions in tendons and their insertion, with symptoms including activity-related chronic pain. To study the pathogenesis and management strategies of chronic tendinopathy, studies in animal models are essential. The different animal models in the literature present advantages and limitations, and there is no consensus regarding the criteria of a universal tendinopathy animal model. Based on the review of literature and the discussion in the International Symposium on Ligaments and Tendons-X, we concluded that established clinical, histopathological and functional characteristics of human tendinopathy were all important and relevant criteria to be met, if possible, by animal models. As tendinopathy is a progressive, multifactorial tendon disorder affecting different anatomical structures, it may not be realistic to expect a single animal model to study all aspects of tendinopathy. Staging of tendinopathy over time and clearer definition of tendinopathies in relation to severity and type would enable realistic targets with any animal model. The existing animal models can be used for answering specific questions (horses for courses) but should not be used to conclude the general aspects of tendinopathy neither in animals nor in human.

Comparative immunophenotyping of equine multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells: An approach toward a standardized definition

“…This is due to the resemblance of equine joints and large tendons to their human equivalents not only regarding anatomical aspects such as cartilage thickness (19) or tendon composition and biomechanical properties (21), but also regarding their pathology. In contrast, small laboratory animals lack comparability to humans due to the immense differences in terms of mechanical loads on tendons and cartilage (22). Using the horse as a model in clinical and experimental studies, promising results have been obtained with the therapeutical usage of MSCs for orthopedic disorders.…”

Vitamin C Improves Therapeutic Effects of Adipose-derived Stem Cell Transplantation in Mouse Tendonitis Model

“…horse, rabbit, rat) using different methods (e.g. mechanical overloading, chemical induction) (32). The mouse tendonitis model is rare because mice are too small and are not suitable for the tendonitis model.…”

Capacity for sliding between tendon fascicles decreases with ageing in injury prone equine tendons: a possible mechanism for age-related tendinopathy?

“…The equine SDFT, like the human Achilles, is subjected to high loads and strains in vivo. The initiation and progression of tendinopathy are similar between horses and humans (Innes and Clegg, 2010;Lui et al, 2010), and the prevalence of tendon injury increases with increasing subject age in both the human Achilles (Hess, 2010;Knobloch et al, 2008) and equine SDFT (Kasashima et al, 2004;Perkins et al, 2005). Therefore, the horse is often used as a model to study agerelated changes that occur to the tendon tissue (Birch et al, 1999;Dudhia et al, 2007;Thorpe et al, 2010b) as it is difficult to obtain healthy samples from human subjects with a wide age range.…”