HEG1 Protects Against Atherosclerosis by Regulating Stable Flow-Induced KLF2/4 Expression in Endothelial Cells.

BACKGROUND: Atherosclerosis preferentially occurs in arterial regions of disturbed blood flow, and stable flow (s-flow) protects against atherosclerosis by incompletely understood mechanisms. METHODS: Our single-cell RNA-sequencing data using the mouse partial carotid ligation model was reanalyzed, which identified Heart-of-glass 1 (HEG1) as an s-flow-induced gene. HEG1 expression was studied by immunostaining, quantitive polymerase chain reaction, hybridization chain reaction, and Western blot in mouse arteries, human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs), and human coronary arteries. A small interfering RNA-mediated knockdown of HEG1 was used to study its function and signaling mechanisms in HAECs under various flow conditions using a cone-and-plate shear device. We generated endothelial-targeted, tamoxifen-inducible HEG1 knockout (HEG1iECKO) mice. To determine the role of HEG1 in atherosclerosis, HEG1iECKO and littermate-control mice were injected with an adeno-associated virus-PCSK9 [proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9] and fed a Western diet to induce hypercholesterolemia either for 2 weeks with partial carotid ligation or 2 months without the surgery. RESULTS: S-flow induced HEG1 expression at the mRNA and protein levels in vivo and in vitro. S-flow stimulated HEG1 protein translocation to the downstream side of HAECs and release into the media, followed by increased messenger RNA and protein expression. HEG1 knockdown prevented s-flow-induced endothelial responses, including monocyte adhesion, permeability, and migration. Mechanistically, HEG1 knockdown prevented s-flow-induced KLF2/4 (Kruppel-like factor 2/4) expression by regulating its intracellular binding partner KRIT1 (Krev interaction trapped protein 1) and the MEKK3-MEK5-ERK5-MEF2 pathway in HAECs. Compared with littermate controls, HEG1iECKO mice exposed to hypercholesterolemia for 2 weeks and partial carotid ligation developed advanced atherosclerotic plaques, featuring increased necrotic core area, thin-capped fibroatheroma, inflammation, and intraplaque hemorrhage. In a conventional Western diet model for 2 months, HEG1iECKO mice also showed an exacerbated atherosclerosis development in the arterial tree in both sexes and the aortic sinus in males but not in females. Moreover, endothelial HEG1 expression was reduced in human coronary arteries with advanced atherosclerotic plaques. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that HEG1 is a novel mediator of atheroprotective endothelial responses to flow and a potential therapeutic target.

Machine vs. Radiologist-Based Translations of RadLex: Implications for Multi-language Report Interoperability.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of translation of RadLex lexicon from English to German performed by Google Translate, using the RadLex ontology as ground truth. The same comparison was also performed for German to English translations. We determined the concordance rate of the Google Translate-rendered translations (for both English to German and German to English translations) to the official German RadLex (translations provided by the German Radiological Society) and English RadLex terms via character-by-character concordance analysis (string matching). Specific term characteristics of term character count and word count were compared between concordant and discordant translations using t-tests. Google Translate-rendered translations originally considered incongruent (2482 English terms and 2500 German terms) were then reviewed by German and English-speaking radiologists to further evaluate clinical utility. Overall success rates of both methods were calculated by adding the percentage of terms marked correct by string comparison to the percentage marked correct during manual review extrapolated to the terms that had been initially marked incorrect during string analysis. 64,632 English and 47,425 German RadLex terms were analyzed. 3507 (5.4%) of the Google Translate-rendered English to German translations were concordant with the official German RadLex terms when evaluated via character-by-character concordance. 3288 (6.9%) of the Google Translate-rendered German to English translations matched the corresponding English RadLex terms. Human review of a random sample of non-concordant machine translations revealed that 95.5% of such English to German translations were understandable, whereas 43.9% of such German to English translations were understandable. Combining both string matching and human review resulted in an overall Google Translate success rate of 95.7% for English to German translations and 47.8% for German to English translations. For certain radiologic text translation tasks, Google Translate may be a useful tool for translating multi-language radiology reports into a common language for natural language processing and subsequent labeling of datasets for machine learning. Indeed, string matching analysis alone is an incomplete method for evaluating machine translation. However, when human review of automated translation is also incorporated, measured performance improves. Additional evaluation using longer text samples and full imaging reports is needed. An apparent discordance between English to German versus German to English translation suggests that the direction of translation affects accuracy.

Initial Experience With Low-Dose 18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography/Magnetic Resonance Imaging With Deep Learning Enhancement.

OBJECTIVE: To demonstrate the utility of deep learning enhancement (DLE) to achieve diagnostic quality low-dose positron emission tomography (PET)/magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. METHODS: Twenty subjects with known Crohn disease underwent simultaneous PET/MR imaging after intravenous administration of approximately 185 MBq of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG). Five image sets were generated: (1) standard-of-care (reference), (2) low-dose (ie, using 20% of PET counts), (3) DLE-enhanced low-dose using PET data as input, (4) DLE-enhanced low-dose using PET and MR data as input, and (5) DLE-enhanced using no PET data input. Image sets were evaluated by both quantitative metrics and qualitatively by expert readers. RESULTS: Although low-dose images (series 2) and images with no PET data input (series 5) were nondiagnostic, DLE of the low-dose images (series 3 and 4) achieved diagnostic quality images that scored more favorably than reference (series 1), both qualitatively and quantitatively. CONCLUSIONS: Deep learning enhancement has the potential to enable a 90% reduction of radiotracer while achieving diagnostic quality images.

Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Antagonists Mitigate the Effects of Dioxin on Critical Cellular Functions in Differentiating Human Osteoblast-Like Cells.

The inhibition of bone healing in humans is a well-established effect associated with cigarette smoking, but the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. Recent work using animal cell lines have implicated the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) as a mediator of the anti-osteogenic effects of cigarette smoke, but the complexity of cigarette smoke mixtures makes understanding the mechanisms of action a major challenge. 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD, dioxin) is a high-affinity AhR ligand that is frequently used to investigate biological processes impacted by AhR activation. Since there are dozens of AhR ligands present in cigarette smoke, we utilized dioxin as a prototype ligand to activate the receptor and explore its effects on pro-osteogenic biomarkers and other factors critical to osteogenesis using a human osteoblast-like cell line. We also explored the capacity for AhR antagonists to protect against dioxin action in this context. We found dioxin to inhibit osteogenic differentiation, whereas co-treatment with various AhR antagonists protected against dioxin action. Dioxin also negatively impacted cell adhesion with a corresponding reduction in the expression of integrin and cadherin proteins, which are known to be involved in this process. Similarly, the dioxin-mediated inhibition of cell migration correlated with reduced expression of the chemokine receptor CXCR4 and its ligand, CXCL12, and co-treatment with antagonists restored migratory capacity. Our results suggest that AhR activation may play a role in the bone regenerative response in humans exposed to AhR activators, such as those present in cigarette smoke. Given the similarity of our results using a human cell line to previous work done in murine cells, animal models may yield data relevant to the human setting. In addition, the AhR may represent a potential therapeutic target for orthopedic patients who smoke cigarettes, or those who are exposed to secondhand smoke or other environmental sources of aryl hydrocarbons.

Ultrasound frequency-controlled microbubble dynamics in brain vessels regulate the enrichment of inflammatory pathways in the blood-brain barrier.

Microbubble-enhanced ultrasound provides a noninvasive physical method to locally overcome major obstacles to the accumulation of blood-borne therapeutics in the brain, posed by the blood-brain barrier (BBB). However, due to the highly nonlinear and coupled behavior of microbubble dynamics in brain vessels, the impact of microbubble resonant effects on BBB signaling and function remains undefined. Here, combined theoretical and prospective experimental investigations reveal that microbubble resonant effects in brain capillaries can control the enrichment of inflammatory pathways that are sensitive to wall shear stress and promote differential expression of a range of transcripts in the BBB, supporting the notion that microbubble dynamics exerted mechanical stress can be used to establish molecular, in addition to spatial, therapeutic windows to target brain diseases. Consistent with these findings, a robust increase in cytotoxic T-cell accumulation in brain tumors was observed, demonstrating the functional relevance and potential clinical significance of the observed immuno-mechano-biological responses.

Flow-induced reprogramming of endothelial cells in atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerotic diseases such as myocardial infarction, ischaemic stroke and peripheral artery disease continue to be leading causes of death worldwide despite the success of treatments with cholesterol-lowering drugs and drug-eluting stents, raising the need to identify additional therapeutic targets. Interestingly, atherosclerosis preferentially develops in curved and branching arterial regions, where endothelial cells are exposed to disturbed blood flow with characteristic low-magnitude oscillatory shear stress. By contrast, straight arterial regions exposed to stable flow, which is associated with high-magnitude, unidirectional shear stress, are relatively well protected from the disease through shear-dependent, atheroprotective endothelial cell responses. Flow potently regulates structural, functional, transcriptomic, epigenomic and metabolic changes in endothelial cells through mechanosensors and mechanosignal transduction pathways. A study using single-cell RNA sequencing and chromatin accessibility analysis in a mouse model of flow-induced atherosclerosis demonstrated that disturbed flow reprogrammes arterial endothelial cells in situ from healthy phenotypes to diseased ones characterized by endothelial inflammation, endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition, endothelial-to-immune cell-like transition and metabolic changes. In this Review, we discuss this emerging concept of disturbed-flow-induced reprogramming of endothelial cells (FIRE) as a potential pro-atherogenic mechanism. Defining the flow-induced mechanisms through which endothelial cells are reprogrammed to promote atherosclerosis is a crucial area of research that could lead to the identification of novel therapeutic targets to combat the high prevalence of atherosclerotic disease.

Single-Cell RNA sequencing investigation of female-male differences under PAD conditions.

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is an age-related medical condition affecting mostly muscular arteries of the limb. It is the 3rd leading cause of atherosclerotic morbidity. The mechanical environment of endothelial cells (ECs) in PAD is characterized by disturbed blood flow (d-flow) and stiff extracellular matrices. In PAD, the stiffness of arteries is due to decreased elastin function and increased collagen content. These flow and stiffness parameters are largely missing from current models of PAD. It has been previously proven that ECs exposed to d-flow or stiff substrates lead to proatherogenic pathways, but the effect of both, d-flow and stiffness, on EC phenotype has not been fully investigated. In this study, we sought to explore the effect of sex on proatherogenic pathways that could result from exposing endothelial cells to a d-flow and stiff environment. We utilized the scRNA-seq tool to analyze the gene expression of ECs exposed to the different mechanical conditions both in vitro and in vivo. We found that male ECs exposed to different mechanical stimuli presented higher expression of genes related to fibrosis and d-flow in vitro. We validated our findings in vivo by exposing murine carotid arteries to d-flow via partial carotid artery ligation. Since women have delayed onset of arterial stiffening and subsequent PAD, this work may provide a framework for some of the pathways in which biological sex interacts with sex-based differences in PAD.

Sox13 is a novel flow-sensitive transcription factor that prevents inflammation by repressing chemokine expression in endothelial cells.

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease and occurs preferentially in arterial regions exposed to disturbed blood flow (d-flow) while the stable flow (s-flow) regions are spared. D-flow induces endothelial inflammation and atherosclerosis by regulating endothelial gene expression partly through the flow-sensitive transcription factors (FSTFs). Most FSTFs, including the well-known Kruppel-like factors KLF2 and KLF4, have been identified from in vitro studies using cultured endothelial cells (ECs). Since many flow-sensitive genes and pathways are lost or dysregulated in ECs during culture, we hypothesized that many important FSTFs in ECs in vivo have not been identified. We tested the hypothesis by analyzing our recent gene array and single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq) and chromatin accessibility sequencing (scATACseq) datasets generated using the mouse partial carotid ligation model. From the analyses, we identified 30 FSTFs, including the expected KLF2/4 and novel FSTFs. They were further validated in mouse arteries in vivo and cultured human aortic ECs (HAECs). These results revealed 8 FSTFs, SOX4, SOX13, SIX2, ZBTB46, CEBPß, NFIL3, KLF2, and KLF4, that are conserved in mice and humans in vivo and in vitro. We selected SOX13 for further studies because of its robust flow-sensitive regulation, preferential expression in ECs, and unknown flow-dependent function. We found that siRNA-mediated knockdown of SOX13 increased endothelial inflammatory responses even under the unidirectional laminar shear stress (ULS, mimicking s-flow) condition. To understand the underlying mechanisms, we conducted an RNAseq study in HAECs treated with SOX13 siRNA under shear conditions (ULS vs. oscillatory shear mimicking d-flow). We found 94 downregulated and 40 upregulated genes that changed in a shear- and SOX13-dependent manner. Several cytokines, including CXCL10 and CCL5, were the most strongly upregulated genes in HAECs treated with SOX13 siRNA. The robust induction of CXCL10 and CCL5 was further validated by qPCR and ELISA in HAECs. Moreover, the treatment of HAECs with Met-CCL5, a specific CCL5 receptor antagonist, prevented the endothelial inflammation responses induced by siSOX13. In addition, SOX13 overexpression prevented the endothelial inflammation responses. In summary, SOX13 is a novel conserved FSTF, which represses the expression of pro-inflammatory chemokines in ECs under s-flow. Reduction of endothelial SOX13 triggers chemokine expression and inflammatory responses, a major proatherogenic pathway.

AUR-RRA Review: Logistics of Academic-Industry Partnerships in Artificial Intelligence.

The Radiology Research Alliance (RRA) of the Association of University Radiologists (AUR) convenes Task Forces to address current topics in radiology. In this article, the AUR-RRA Task Force on Academic-Industry Partnerships for Artificial Intelligence, considered issues of importance to academic radiology departments contemplating industry partnerships in artificial intelligence (AI) development, testing and evaluation. Our goal was to create a framework encompassing the domains of clinical, technical, regulatory, legal and financial considerations that impact the arrangement and success of such partnerships.

Medical Student Perspectives on the Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Practice of Medicine.

INTRODUCTION: Concerns about radiologists being replaced by artificial intelligence (AI) from the lay media could have a negative impact on medical students' perceptions of radiology as a viable specialty. The purpose of this study was to evaluate United States of America medical students' perceptions about radiology and other medical specialties in relation to AI. METHODS: An anonymous, web-based survey was sent to 32 radiology interest groups at United States medical schools. The survey was comprised of 6 questions assessing medical student perceptions of AI and its potential impact on radiology and other medical specialties. Responses were voluntary and collected over a 6-month period from November 2017 to April 2018. RESULTS: A total of 156 students responded with representation from each year of medical school. Over 75% agreed that AI would have a significant role in the future of medicine. Most (66%) agreed that diagnostic radiology would be the specialty most greatly affected. Nearly half (44%) reported that AI made them less enthusiastic about radiology. The majority of students (57%) obtained their information about AI from online articles. Thematic analysis of free answer comments revealed mostly neutral comments towards AI, however, the negative responses were the strongest and most detailed. CONCLUSIONS: US medical students believe that AI will play a significant role in medicine, particularly in radiology. However, nearly half are less enthusiastic about the field of radiology due to AI. As the majority receive information about AI from online articles, which may have negative sentiments towards AI's impact on radiology, formal AI education and medical student outreach may help combat misinformation and help prevent the dissuading of medical students who might otherwise consider the specialty.

Management of Internal Carotid Artery and Intracranial Anterior Circulation Tandem Occlusion with Stenting versus No Stenting: A Multicenter Study.

BACKGROUND: Tandem occlusion (TO) describes not only occlusion of the middle cerebral artery but a contemporaneous occlusion of the cervical internal carotid artery. There is a paucity of data over whether mechanical thrombectomy (MT) alone, MT with angioplasty, or MT with carotid artery stent placement is superior. We aim to address a gap in the literature comparing carotid stenting with mechanical thrombectomy (CSMT) and carotid angioplasty with mechanical thrombectomy (CAMT) in patients presenting with acute anterior circulation TOs. METHODS: This is a multicenter, retrospective study from 2012 to 2020 comparing CSMT and CAMT presenting with acute anterior circulation TOs. Primary outcomes of interest were functional status, perioperative stroke, mortality, and symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH). A total of 92 patients (66 vs. 26 in CSMT and CAMT, respectively) met inclusion criteria for analysis. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference in functional outcomes at 90-day follow-up (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.82; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.20-3.5; P = 0.46). In addition, there was no statistically significant difference in 90-day mortality (aOR 0.361; 95% CI 0.016-2.92; P = 0.532) and perioperative stroke rate (aOR 1.76; 95% CI 0.160-15.6; P = 0.613). However, sICH risk was significantly greater in the stent-treated cohort (aOR 3.94; 95% CI 0.529-37.4; P = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: Functional outcomes, mortality, and perioperative stroke rates do not significantly differ in CSMT and CAMT procedures in the acute setting. However, CSMT-treated patients do appear to have an increased risk of sICH, potentially due to the use of additional antiplatelet agents following stent placement.

Pediatric whole body MRI detects causative ovarian teratoma in opsoclonus myoclonus syndrome.

Opsoclonus Myoclonus Syndrome (OMS, or Opsoclonus Myoclonus Ataxia) is a rare condition that presents with saccadic movements of the eyes, cerebellar ataxia, and choreiform movements of the limbs. While previous reports have described the use of ultrasound, CT, FDG-PET and traditional focused MRI for localization of OMS-associated masses, whole body MRI has not previously been reported for this purpose. Here we describe a 16-year-old patient who exhibited OMS and underwent whole body MRI to rule out the more commonly associated neuroblastoma. An ovarian mass was discovered, resected, and pathology confirmed benign teratoma - there was subsequent resolution of symptoms after complete surgical resection. Whole body MRI should be considered in pediatric cases of OMS due to the paraneoplastic nature of the disease with associated tumor, high sensitivity of disease detection, lack of ionizing radiation, excellent tissue resolution and demonstrated effectiveness in pediatric imaging.

Injectable Therapeutic Organoids Using Sacrificial Hydrogels.

Organoids are becoming widespread in drug-screening technologies but have been used sparingly for cell therapy as current approaches for producing self-organized cell clusters lack scalability or reproducibility in size and cellular organization. We introduce a method of using hydrogels as sacrificial scaffolds, which allow cells to form self-organized clusters followed by gentle release, resulting in highly reproducible multicellular structures on a large scale. We demonstrated this strategy for endothelial cells and mesenchymal stem cells to self-organize into blood-vessel units, which were injected into mice, and rapidly formed perfusing vasculature. Moreover, in a mouse model of peripheral artery disease, intramuscular injections of blood-vessel units resulted in rapid restoration of vascular perfusion within seven days. As cell therapy transforms into a new class of therapeutic modality, this simple method-by making use of the dynamic nature of hydrogels-could offer high yields of self-organized multicellular aggregates with reproducible sizes and cellular architectures.

Abdominal Wall Masses: CT Findings and Clues to Differential Diagnosis.

The abdominal wall does not comprise a distinct organ, and is often cursorily evaluated on CT. However, it is affected by many different pathological processes. These may be categorized according to their underlying etiology-trauma, infection or inflammation, iatrogenic and neoplastic process-or according to the abdominal wall layer they affect. We chose instead to group these lesions into 6 distinct categories based on their CT characteristic density: solid, infiltrative, hypervascular, fluid, fat, and bone density lesions. We highlight throughout the article the importance of integrating pertinent clinical history to narrow the differential diagnosis.

Mechanistic insight into the effects of Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor activation on osteogenic differentiation.

While inhibition of bone healing and increased rates of pseudarthrosis are known adverse outcomes associated with cigarette smoking, the underlying mechanisms by which this occurs are not well understood. Recent work has implicated the Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor (Ahr) as one mediator of the anti-osteogenic effects of cigarette smoke (CS), which contains numerous toxic ligands for the Ahr. 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD, dioxin) is a high-affinity Ahr ligand frequently used to evaluate Ahr pathway activation. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the downstream mechanisms of dioxin action on bone regeneration and investigate Ahr antagonism as a potential therapeutic approach to mitigate the effects of dioxin on bone. Markers of osteogenic activity and differentiation were assessed in primary rat bone marrow stromal cells (BMSC) after exposure to dioxin, Ahr antagonists, or antagonist + dioxin. Four Ahr antagonists were evaluated: α-Naphthoflavone (ANF), resveratrol (Res), 3,3'-Diindolylmethane (DIM), and luteolin (Lut). Our results demonstrate that dioxin inhibited ALP activity, migratory capacity, and matrix mineralization, whereas co-treatment with each of the antagonists mitigated these effects. Dioxin also inhibited BMSC chemotaxis, while co-treatment with several antagonists partially rescued this effect. RNA and protein expression studies found that dioxin down-regulated numerous pro-osteogenic targets, whereas co-treatment with Ahr antagonists prevented these dioxin-induced expression changes to varying degrees. Our results suggest that dioxin adversely affects bone regeneration in a myriad of ways, many of which appear to be mediated by the Ahr. Our work suggests that the Ahr should be investigated as a therapeutic target to combat the adverse effects of CS on bone healing.

The effect of vancomycin powder on bone healing in a rat spinal rhBMP-2 model.

OBJECTIVE This study aims to quantify the impact of vancomycin powder application on new bone formation and spine fusion rates in a rat posterolateral arthrodesis model. METHODS Thirty-six female Sprague-Dawley rats underwent a posterolateral lumbar spinal fusion (PLF) at the L-4 and L-5 vertebrae. Fusion was elicited via implantation of an absorbable collagen sponge containing 3 µg rhBMP-2. Rats were divided into 3 groups: no vancomycin (control), standard-dose vancomycin, and high-dose vancomycin, based on what was applied to the fusion bed. Clinical studies typically describe the application of 1 g vancomycin into the surgical wound. Presuming an average individual patient weight of 70 kg, a weight-based equivalent dose of vancomycin powder was applied subfascially in the PLF model constituting a "standard-dose" treatment group (14.3 mg/kg, n = 12). To determine whether there is a critical threshold beyond which vancomycin increases the risk of pseudarthrosis, a 10-fold higher dose was administered to a "high-dose" treatment group (143 mg/kg, n = 12). No vancomycin powder was applied to the surgical site in the control group (n = 12). Fusion was evaluated with plain radiographs at 4 and 8 weeks after surgery. The spines were harvested after the 8-week radiographs were obtained and evaluated using manual palpation, microCT analysis, and histological analysis. RESULTS Radiographs demonstrated equivalent bridging bone formation in all groups. No significant differences in fusion scores were seen in the standard-dose (mean 2.25) or high-dose (2.13) treatment groups relative to untreated control animals (1.78). Similarly, fusion rates did not differ significantly different between vancomycin-treated animals (100% for both groups) and control animals (92%). Quantification of new bone formation via microCT imaging revealed no significant between-groups differences in the volume of newly regenerated bone (control vs standard-dose vancomycin, p = 0.57; control vs high-dose vancomycin, p = 0.53). CONCLUSIONS This is the first in vivo study to specifically address the development of pseudarthrosis after intrawound application of vancomycin during fusion surgery. Our results demonstrate that vancomycin powder does not inhibit fusion rates at a dose that is the weight-percentage equivalent of what is routinely used by surgeons. Moreover, bone formation and fusion rates were not reduced even after administration of a vancomycin dose that is 10-fold higher than that which is typically administered clinically. Our findings suggest that if there is a critical threshold above which vancomycin inhibits bone healing, such a dose is out of the range which might be considered reasonable for clinical use.

Ovariectomy-Induced Osteoporosis Does Not Impact Fusion Rates in a Recombinant Human Bone Morphogenetic Protein-2-Dependent Rat Posterolateral Arthrodesis Model.

Study Design Randomized, controlled animal study. Objective Recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) is frequently utilized as a bone graft substitute in spinal fusions to overcome the difficult healing environment in patients with osteoporosis. However, the effects of estrogen deficiency and poor bone quality on rhBMP-2 efficacy are unknown. This study sought to determine whether rhBMP-2-induced healing is affected by estrogen deficiency and poor bone quality in a stringent osteoporotic posterolateral spinal fusion model. Methods Aged female Sprague-Dawley rats underwent an ovariectomy (OVX group) or a sham procedure, and the OVX animals were fed a low-calcium, low-phytoestrogen diet. After 12 weeks, the animals underwent a posterolateral spinal fusion with 1 µg rhBMP-2 on an absorbable collagen sponge. Representative animals were sacrificed at 1 week postoperative for alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and osteocalcin serum analyses. The remaining animals underwent radiographs 2 and 4 weeks after surgery and were subsequently euthanized for fusion analysis by manual palpation, micro-computed tomography (CT) imaging, and histologic analysis. Results The ALP and osteocalcin levels were similar between the control and OVX groups. Manual palpation revealed no significant differences in the fusion scores between the control (1.42 ± 0.50) and OVX groups (1.83 ± 0.36; p = 0.07). Fusion rates were 100% in both groups. Micro-CT imaging revealed no significant difference in the quantity of new bone formation, and histologic analysis demonstrated bridging bone across the transverse processes in fused animals from both groups. Conclusions This study demonstrates that estrogen deficiency and compromised bone quality do not negatively influence spinal fusion when utilizing rhBMP-2, and the osteoinductive capacity of the growth factor is not functionally reduced under osteoporotic conditions in the rat. Although osteoporosis is a risk factor for pseudarthrosis/nonunion, rhBMP-2-induced healing was not inhibited in osteoporotic rats.

Dioxin Exposure Impairs BMP-2-Mediated Spinal Fusion in a Rat Arthrodesis Model.

BACKGROUND: Cigarette smoking inhibits bone-healing and leads to increased rates of pseudarthrosis. However, the mechanisms behind these effects are controversial. Dioxin (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin)--a cigarette smoke constituent and potent activator of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (Ahr)--negatively impacts bone quality and osteoblast differentiation. We hypothesized that activation of the Ahr by dioxin would inhibit bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-2-mediated spinal fusion in a rat arthrodesis model. METHODS: Female Long-Evans rats were pretreated with dioxin or vehicle in six weekly doses, followed by bilateral posterior lumbar spinal fusion across the L4-L5 transverse processes using recombinant human BMP (rhBMP)-2. Treatments continued until sacrifice at four weeks postoperatively. A third group was treated with dioxin for six weeks, followed by a recovery period of four elimination half-lives to assess the reversible effects of dioxin exposure on spinal fusion capacity. Bone formation and fusion capacity were evaluated using fusion scoring, radiography, micro-computed tomography, and histologic analysis. RESULTS: Fusion scores for dioxin-treated and dioxin-recovery rats were significantly lower than those for controls. Although fusion rates were also significantly reduced in dioxin-treated animals relative to controls (50% versus 100%, respectively), rates were not significantly reduced in dioxin-recovery animals (80%). CONCLUSIONS: Dioxin treatment significantly inhibited spinal fusion in a rat arthrodesis model, and a prolonged cessation of dioxin exposure facilitated only a partial recovery of bone-healing capacity. This finding indicates that, although the effects of dioxin are persistent, an extended recovery from exposure could potentially restore bone regeneration in vivo. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Development of a pharmacologic agent that reduces the adverse effects of cigarette smoke on bone-healing could prove useful to orthopaedic surgeons. Since dioxin and other similar cigarette smoke toxins exert their effects through Ahr pathway activation, the receptor represents a potential therapeutic target to improve spinal fusion rates in patients who smoke.