Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 19, 2026

An In Vitro Organ Culture Model of the Murine Intervertebral Disc
Published on: April 11, 2017
[Characterization of intervertebral disc--disc cells and pericellular microenvironment]
Masato Sato1, Yukihiro Yamamoto, Daisuke Sakai
1Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Surgical Science, Tokai University School of Medicine.
None:
The intervertebral disc is classified as fibrocartilage, and has distinct functional and mechanical properties. The disc, composed of the nucleus pulposus and annulus fibrosus, varies in density, anatomic features, and in the morphology of their constituent cells. This heterogeneity has hampered detailed investigations of disc cellular metabolism. Focusing on the heterogeneity, we cultured disc cells under various conditions to examine the cellular metabolism, specifically glycosaminoglycan accumulation and pericellular microenvironment, and succeeded in mechanically isolating disc chondrons from annulus fibrosus. We believe that disc chondron also plays an important role in maintaining cartilageous phenotype in terms of cell-matrix interaction of the intervertebral disc.
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