The 3D characteristics of post-traumatic syringomyelia in a rat model: a propagation-based synchrotron radiation microtomography study

Abstract

Many published literature sources have described the histopathological characteristics of post-traumatic syringomyelia (PTS). However, three-dimensional (3D) visualization studies of PTS have been limited due to the lack of reliable 3D imaging techniques. In this study, the imaging efficiency of propagation-based synchrotron radiation microtomography (PB-SRµCT) was determined to detect the 3D morphology of the cavity and surrounding microvasculature network in a rat model of PTS. The rat model of PTS was established using the infinite horizon impactor to produce spinal cord injury (SCI), followed by a subarachnoid injection of kaolin to produce arachnoiditis. PB-SRµCT imaging and histological examination, as well as fluorescence staining, were conducted on the animals at the tenth week after SCI. The 3D morphology of the cystic cavity was vividly visualized using PB-SRµCT imaging. The quantitative parameters analyzed by PB-SRµCT, including the lesion and spared spinal cord tissue area, the minimum and maximum diameters in the cystic cavity, and cavity volume, were largely consistent with the results of the histological assessment. Moreover, the 3D morphology of the cavity and surrounding angioarchitecture could be simultaneously detected on the PB-SRµCT images. This study demonstrated that high-resolution PB-SRµCT could be used for the 3D visualization of trauma-induced spinal cord cavities and provides valuable quantitative data for cavity characterization. PB-SRµCT could be used as a reliable imaging technique and offers a novel platform for tracking cavity formation and morphological changes in an experimental animal model of PTS.

Time-Course Changes of Extracellular Matrix Encoding Genes Expression Level in the Spinal Cord Following Contusion Injury—A Data-Driven Approach

“…The areas directly affected by the Impactor tip included the gray matter (dorsal and part of the ventral horn) and the white matter with regard to the dorsal funiculus, which includes the ascending fasciculus gracilis and the descending corticospinal tracts. Following contusion injury, the lesion developed a cystic cavity at the center of the lesion, which spread coronally and longitudinally in both rostral and caudal directions from the 1.5 mm wide impact, extending for more than 4.0 mm across the center of the lesion at 3 DPL, then expanding further, surrounded by scar tissue, an evolution which corresponds to the literature in the field [4,[22][23][24]. Quantitative MRI indicated that most of the axons directly affected by the impact degenerated rostrally to the injury site, while minor damage was observed caudally [25].…”

“…Moreover, we performed a correlation between the gene expression levels from single animals and the related BBB score, finding no differences for all the analyzed genes ( Supplementary Table S1). (4,27); Bcan p = 0.0441, t = 2.112 (5,27); Slit2 p = 0.0341, t = 2.232 (5,27); Lgals1 p = 0.035, t = 2.22 (4, 27), * p < 0.05.…”

“…The final component is the chronic phase, involving the formation of a cystic cavity (syringomyelia, which is present in humans and to a lesser extent in rodents [3], progressive axonal die-back and evolution toa fibrotic scar. The secondary lesion evolves differently rostrally and caudally to the lesion; syringomyelia extension being more severe caudally to the lesion [4], whereas white matter lesion appears to be more severe rostrally to the lesion epicenter [5].…”

Characterization of microvessels and parenchyma in in-line phase contrast imaging CT: healthy liver, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma

“…Over the last few years, several applied approaches for such imaging have been reported for the brain (14,15), spinal cord (16)(17)(18), lung (19,20), breast (21), liver (22)(23)(24), kidney (25), etc. In our previous studies, we found PCI-CT could clearly detect the hepatic sinusoids in human cavernous hemangioma samples (26).…”

Chronic extradural compression of spinal cord leads to syringomyelia in rat model

“…To study a disease, researchers must establish a reproducible animal model that displays high similarity to human disease. Previous methods for establishment of a model of syringomyelia include injecting excitotoxic acid into the spinal cord parenchyma [9,12] or kaolin into the subarachnoid space [13] and cisterna magna [6,[14][15][16][17][18][19], or inducing spinal cord injury by a spinal cord impactor [20]. Kaolin can spread in the vertebral canal and cause wide intraspinal inflammation.…”