Articular cartilage imaging by the use of phase-contrast tomography in a collagen-induced arthritis mouse model.
OBJECTIVE
This study was designed to demonstrate the feasibility of the use of phase-contrast computed tomographic (CT) imaging for the identification of articular cartilage abnormalities of the knees in a mouse model of collagen-induced arthritis.


METHODS
Arthritis was induced in nine male DBA/1 J mice by the intradermal injection of collagen. After 50 days, the nine mice were sacrificed, along with four mice that did not receive intradermal injections of collagen. Phase-contrast CT imaging using a microfocus x-ray source of the entire knee was performed. The images were evaluated by two blinded readers, and histopathologic grades were considered the reference standard. The phase-contrast CT images of cartilage were graded 0, I, or II. Evaluation of the grading agreement between the phase-contrast CT images and histopathologic findings was performed using correlation analysis.


RESULTS
Phase-contrast CT images highly reflected the subchondral bone status in the assessment of articular cartilage abnormalities in the mouse model of collagen-induced arthritis. Three-dimensional reformed images showed the articular surface and subchondral bony status of the knee joints. On the basis of the histopathology of the 26 knee joints, 12 joints were grade 0, six joints were grade I, and eight joints were grade II. Grading agreement between the use of the phase-contrast CT images and histopathologic results was high (r = 0.76).


CONCLUSIONS
Phase-contrast CT imaging using a microfocus x-ray source offers a promising tool for the assessment of articular cartilage abnormalities of the knees in a mouse model.
Lee
Yeom Sik
YS
Department of Radiology and the Institute for Radiological Imaging Science, Wonkwang University School of Medicine, 344-2 Sinyong-dong, Iksan, Jeonbuk 570-749, Korea.
Heo
Eun-A
EA
Jun
Hong Young
HY
Kang
Sung Hoon
SH
Kim
Hun Soo
HS
Lee
Myung Soo
MS
Byun
Seung-Jae
SJ
Lee
Sang Ho
SH
Park
Seong Hoon
SH
Yoon
Kwon-Ha
KH
D000818:Animals; D001168:Arthritis / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000473:pathology*; D002358:Cartilage, Articular / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology*; D024043:Collagen Type II; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008811:Mice, Inbred DBA; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*
D024043:Collagen Type II