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Related Experiment Videos

Mechanical differences between lumbar and tail discs in the mouse.

Joseph J Sarver1, Dawn M Elliott

  • 1Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, McKay Orthopaedics Research Laboratory, University of Pennsylvania, 424 Stemmler Hall, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6081, USA.

Journal of Orthopaedic Research : Official Publication of the Orthopaedic Research Society
|December 21, 2004
PubMed
Summary

Mouse tail discs exhibit greater axial displacement and less stiffness than lumbar discs, offering new insights into disc degeneration models. This comparison highlights key mechanical differences relevant to in vivo studies.

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Area of Science:

  • Biomechanical Engineering
  • Orthopedic Research
  • Comparative Anatomy

Background:

  • Mouse lumbar and tail discs are utilized as models for investigating disc degeneration.
  • A comparative analysis of the mechanical properties between these two disc types is lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare the elastic and viscoelastic mechanical properties of mouse lumbar and tail discs under axial compression-tension loading.
  • To test the hypotheses that tail discs possess a larger neutral zone and exhibit lower compressive stiffness compared to lumbar discs.

Main Methods:

  • Bone-disc-bone motion segments from mouse lumbar and tail regions were subjected to axial compression and tension loading.
  • Nonlinear elastic mechanical behavior was analyzed using a tri-linear curvefit.

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  • Viscoelastic behavior was assessed using a stretch-exponential curvefit.

    • Main Results:

    • Lumbar discs were nearly twice as stiff as tail discs in the transition region (neutral zone) over half the axial displacement.
    • Under static creep compression, lumbar discs compressed by 60% of their original height, while tail discs compressed by 98%.
    • Tail discs demonstrated significantly greater axial displacement than lumbar discs under equivalent loads.

    Conclusions:

    • Mouse tail discs undergo substantially more axial displacement than lumbar discs when subjected to identical loads.
    • The findings provide crucial biomechanical data for rodent tail models used in disc degeneration research.
    • The study introduced a tri-linear model to quantify transition zone stiffness, a novel approach for future disc mechanics research.