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X-RAY IMAGING

Resolving nanoscale strains in whole joints

Nature Biomedical Engineering volume 4, pages 257–258 (2020)Cite this article

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Nanoscale strains in the intact whole joints of young, old and osteoarthritic mice can be resolved ex vivo via synchrotron X-ray tomography when combined with nanometrically precise mechanical loading.

In moving knee joints, forces exerted by muscle are transferred to cortical and trabecular bone via the articular cartilage–subchondral bone (CCS). The osteochondral interface (which covers the knee joint surface) in the CCS is typically resilient to fatigue damage resulting from a lifetime of load cycles. However, the breakdown of such interfacial tissue can lead to osteoarthritis, which is associated with cartilage wear and the activation of nerve endings in the underlying bone (and thereby pain). The mechanisms of load transfer through the osteochondral interface in healthy and diseased tissues are poorly understood, and whether osteoarthritis is initiated in the cartilage or in the underlying subchondral bone is still a matter of debate1. Understanding load transfer and the magnitude and distributions of the resulting tissue strains throughout the CCS under physiologically representative conditions could provide valuable insights into the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis. Yet the study of how tissues in the joint interact, especially at the nanoscale, remains difficult.

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Fig. 1: Maps of nanoscale strains in intact murine knee joints obtained by sCT and DVC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA

    Mariana E. Kersh

  2. Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA

    Mariana E. Kersh

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  1. Mariana E. Kersh
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Correspondence to Mariana E. Kersh.

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Kersh, M.E. Resolving nanoscale strains in whole joints. Nat Biomed Eng 4, 257–258 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41551-020-0531-z

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