title: A regenerative approach towards recovering the mechanical properties of degenerated intervertebral discs: Genipin and platelet-rich plasma therapies.
abstract: Degenerative disc disease, associated with discrete structural changes in the peripheral annulus and vertebral endplate, is one of the most common pathological triggers of acute and chronic low back pain, significantly depreciating an individual's quality of life and instigating huge socioeconomic costs. Novel emerging therapeutic techniques are hence of great interest to both research and clinical communities alike. Exogenous crosslinking, such as Genipin, and platelet-rich plasma therapies have been recently demonstrated encouraging results for the repair and regeneration of degenerated discs, but there remains a knowledge gap regarding the quantitative degree of effectiveness and particular influence on the mechanical properties of the disc. This study aimed to investigate and quantify the material properties of intact (N = 8), trypsin-denatured (N = 8), Genipin-treated (N = 8), and platelet-rich plasma-treated (N = 8) discs in 32 porcine thoracic motion segments. A poroelastic finite element model was used to describe the mechanical properties during different treatments, while a meta-model analytical approach was used in combination with ex vivo experiments to extract the poroelastic material properties. The results revealed that both Genipin and platelet-rich plasma are able to recover the mechanical properties of denatured discs, thereby affording promising therapeutic modalities. However, platelet-rich plasma-treated discs fared slightly, but not significantly, better than Genipin in terms of recovering the glycosaminoglycans content, an essential building block for healthy discs. In addition to investigating these particular degenerative disc disease therapies, this study provides a systematic methodology for quantifying the detailed poroelastic mechanical properties of intervertebral disc.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nikkhoo
authors.affiliation: 2 Institute of Biomedical Engineering, College of Medicine and Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors.forename: Jaw-Lin
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: 3 Laboratory of Wearable Technologies & Neuromusculoskeletal Research, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Masoud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Abdollahi
authors.affiliation: 2 Institute of Biomedical Engineering, College of Medicine and Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors.forename: Yu-Chun
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.affiliation: 3 Laboratory of Wearable Technologies & Neuromusculoskeletal Research, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohamad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Parnianpour
authors.affiliation: 4 Department of Biomedical Engineering, Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
authors.forename: Kinda
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Khalaf
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D003198:Computer Simulation; D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004548:Elasticity; D020342:Finite Element Analysis; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D055959:Intervertebral Disc Degeneration / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D039823:Iridoids / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008954:Models, Biological; D053657:Platelet-Rich Plasma; D044968:Regenerative Medicine; D034421:Sus scrofa
chemical_list: D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents; D039823:Iridoids; C007834:genipin
keywords: Intervertebral disc; degeneration; finite element method; genipin therapy; platelet-rich plasma therapy; poroelastic mechanical properties