Breathe in and Straighten Your Back: Hypoxia, Notch, and Scoliosis

Histology and chronological magnetic resonance images of congenital spinal deformity: An experimental study in mice model

BACKGROUND

The natural history of the congenital spinal deformity and its clinical magnitude vary widely in human species. However, we previously reported that the spinal deformities of congenital scoliosis mice did not progress throughout our observational period according to soft X-ray and MRI data. In this study, congenital vertebral and intervertebral malformations in mice were assessed via magnetic resonance (MR) and histological images.

METHODS

Congenital spinal anomalies were chronologically assessed via soft X-ray and 7 T MR imaging. MR images were compared to the histological images to validate the findings around the malformations.

RESULTS

Soft X-ray images showed the gross alignment of the spine and the contour of the malformed vertebrae, with the growth plate and cortical bone visible as higher density lines, but could not be used to distinguish the existence of intervertebral structures. In contrast, MR images could be used to distinguish each structure, including the cortical bone, growth plate, cartilaginous end plate, and nucleus pulposus, by combining the signal changes on T1-weighted imaging (T1WI) and T2-weighted imaging (T2WI). The intervertebral structure adjacent to the malformed vertebrae also exhibited various abnormalities, such as growth plate and cartilaginous end plate irregularities, nucleus pulposus defects, and bone marrow formation. In the chronological observation, the thickness and shape of the malformed structures on T1WI did not change.

CONCLUSIONS

Spinal malformations in mice were chronologically observed via 7 T MRI and histology. MR images could be used to distinguish the histological structures of normal and malformed mouse spines. Malformed vertebrae were accompanied by adjacent intervertebral structures that corresponded to the fully segmented structures observed in human congenital scoliosis, but the intervertebral conditions varied. This study suggested the importance of MRI and histological examinations of human congenital scoliosis patients with patterns other than nonsegmenting patterns, which may be used to predict the prognosis of patients with spinal deformities associated with malformed vertebrae.

Genetic animal models of scoliosis: A systematical review

Scoliosis is a complex disease with undetermined pathogenesis and has a strong relationship with genetics. Models of scoliosis in animals have been established for better comprehending its pathogenesis and treatment. In this review, we searched all the genetic animal models with body curvature in databases, and reviewed the related genes and scoliosis types. Meanwhile, we also summarized the pathogenesis of scoliosis reported so far. Summarizing the positive phenotypic animal models contributes to a better understanding on the pathogenesis of scoliosis and facilitates the selection of experimental models when a possible pathogenic factor is concerned.

Drosophila Protein Kinase CK2: Genetics, Regulatory Complexity and Emerging Roles during Development

CK2 is a Ser/Thr protein kinase that is highly conserved amongst all eukaryotes. It is a well-known oncogenic kinase that regulates vital cell autonomous functions and animal development. Genetic studies in the fruit fly Drosophila are providing unique insights into the roles of CK2 in cell signaling, embryogenesis, organogenesis, neurogenesis, and the circadian clock, and are revealing hitherto unknown complexities in CK2 functions and regulation. Here, we review Drosophila CK2 with respect to its structure, subunit diversity, potential mechanisms of regulation, developmental abnormalities linked to mutations in the gene encoding CK2 subunits, and emerging roles in multiple aspects of eye development. We examine the Drosophila CK2 "interaction map" and the eye-specific "transcriptome" databases, which raise the prospect that this protein kinase has many additional targets in the developing eye. We discuss the possibility that CK2 functions during early retinal neurogenesis in Drosophila and mammals bear greater similarity than has been recognized, and that this conservation may extend to other developmental programs. Together, these studies underscore the immense power of the Drosophila model organism to provide new insights and avenues to further investigate developmentally relevant targets of this protein kinase.

Stem Cell Approaches to Intervertebral Disc Regeneration: Obstacles from the Disc Microenvironment

Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration results in segmental instability and irritates neural compressive symptoms, such as low back pain and motor deficiency. The transplanting of stem cell into degenerative discs has attracted increasing clinical attention, as a new and proven approach to alleviating disc degeneration and to relieving discogenic pains. Aside from supplementation with stem cells, the IVD itself already contains a pool of stem and progenitor cells. Since the resident disc stem cells are incapable of reversing the pathologic changes that occur during aging and disc degeneration, it has been debated as to whether transplanted stem cells are capable of providing an efficient and durable therapeutic effect, even though there have been positive outcomes in both animal models and in clinical trials. This review aims to decipher the interactions between the stem cell and the disc microenvironment. Within their new niches in the IVD, the exogenous stem cell shows metabolic adaptation to the low-glucose supply, hypoxia, and compressive loadings, but demonstrates little tolerance to the disc-like acidity and hypertonicity. Similarly, the survival of endogenous stem cells is threatened as well by the harsh disc microenvironment, which may exhaust the stem cell resources and restrict the self-repair capacity of a degenerating IVD. To eliminate the intrinsic obstacles within the stressful disc niches, stem cells should be delivered with an injectable scaffold that provides both survival and mechanical support. Quick healing or concretion of the injection injuries, which minimizes stem cell leakage and disturbance to disc homeostasis, is of equal importance toward achieving efficient stem cell-based disc regeneration.