STUDY DESIGN A review of the literature on macromechanical factors that accelerate disc degeneration with particular focus on distinguishing the roles of immobilization and overloading. OBJECTIVE This review examines evidence from the literature in the areas of biomechanics, epidemiology, animal models, and intervertebral disc physiology. The purpose is to examine: 1) what are the degeneratio...

The aim of the current study was to use gene therapy to attenuate or reverse the degenerative process within the intervertabral disc. The effect of survivin gene therapy via lentiviral vector transfection on the course of intervertebral disc degeneration was investigated in the current study in an in vivo rabbit model. A total of 15 skeletally mature female New Zealand White rabbits were random...

Aberrant proliferation of nucleus pulposus cell is implicated in the pathogenesis of intervertebral disc degeneration. Recent findings revealed that microRNAs, a class of small noncoding RNAs, could regulate cell proliferation in many pathological conditions. Here, we showed that miR-10b was dramatically upregulated in degenerative nucleus pulposus tissues when compared with nucleus pulposus ti...

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to establish a large animal model that recapitulates the spectrum of intervertebral disc degeneration that occurs in humans and which is suitable for pre-clinical evaluation of a wide range of experimental therapeutics. DESIGN Degeneration was induced in the lumbar intervertebral discs of large frame goats by either intradiscal injection of chondroiti...

The precise role of nucleus pulposus cell proliferation in the pathogenesis of intervertebral disc degeneration remains to be elucidated. Recent findings have revealed that microRNAs, a class of small noncoding RNAs, may regulate cell proliferation in many pathological conditions. Here, we showed that miR-21 was significantly upregulated in degenerative nucleus pulposus tissues when compared wi...

INTRODUCTION: Understanding the mechanism which leads to low back pain is a critical step to developing novel preventative strategies and therapeutic interventions that target this debilitating disease. Epidemiologic data indicate a strong correlation between incidence of low back pain and repeated mechanical loading of the spine. Low back pain also correlates with degeneration of the intervert...

Low back pain (LBP) is a common musculoskeletal disorder that affects the general and athletic populations. Intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) is one of the causes of LBP and a current topic in the orthopedic and sports medicine fields. The correlation between IDD and LBP seems controversial. In Part I of this review article, we examine the etiology and nature of intervertebral disc degener...

Degeneration of the intervertebral disk and its treatments are currently intensely investigated topics. Back pain is a condition whose chronic and debilitating nature combined with its prevalence make it a major health issue of substantial socioeconomic importance. Although researchers, and even sometimes clinicians, focus on the degenerated disk as the problem, to most patients, pain is the fa...

OBJECTIVES Interleukin 18 (IL-18) is a regulatory cytokine that degrades the disc matrix. Bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) stimulates synthesis of the disc extracellular matrix. However, the combined effects of BMP-2 and IL-18 on human intervertebral disc degeneration have not previously been reported. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the anabolic cytokine BMP-2 and t...

Recent studies suggest that cell therapy may be an effective way to repair intervertebral disc degeneration. As a strong immune suppressor, TGF-β1 has been shown to inhibit inflammation respond effectively. The objective of this study was to explore the effects of TGF-β1 during bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells-based therapy for disc degeneration. In vitro assays demonstrated that co-culturing...