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Updated: Jun 24, 2026
06:22
Optical Sectioning and Visualization of the Intervertebral Disc from Embryonic Development to Degeneration
Published on: July 8, 2021
Notochordal intervertebral disc cells: sensitivity to nutrient deprivation
Thorsten Guehring1, Geoff Wilde, Matthew Sumner
1University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Arthritis and Rheumatism
|April 1, 2009
Summary
Nutrient stress may cause notochordal cells (NCs) to disappear, leading to disc degeneration. Mature nucleus pulposus cells (MNPCs) are more resistant to nutrient deprivation than NCs, offering insights into disc health.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Cell Biology
- Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- The nucleus pulposus (NP) originates from notochordal cells (NCs).
- Disc degeneration is common in species where NCs are replaced by mature NP cells (MNPCs), unlike species retaining NCs.
- The reasons for NC disappearance remain unclear, but may relate to decreased nutrient supply in the avascular disc.
Purpose of the Study:
- To test the hypothesis that nutrient stress contributes to NC disappearance.
- To investigate the differential metabolic and survival characteristics of NCs and MNPCs under nutrient-limited conditions.
Main Methods:
- 3D cultures of porcine NCs and bovine MNPCs were used to measure cell densities and metabolic rates.
- Survival rates under nutrient deprivation were determined.
- Scanning electron microscopy assessed end plate porosity.
- Mathematical modeling simulated nutrient-metabolite profiles and cell viability.
Main Results:
- NCs exhibited higher metabolic activity and greater susceptibility to nutrient deprivation compared to MNPCs.
- Hypoxia increased glycolysis rates in NCs but not MNPCs.
- Higher end plate porosity in NC-containing discs suggests greater nutrient supply, consistent with higher NC metabolic demands.
- Mathematical models and diffusion experiments indicated that reduced nutrient concentration due to diffusion distance or end plate changes could trigger NC disappearance.
Conclusions:
- NCs have higher energy demands and lower resistance to nutritional stress than MNPCs.
- These findings may explain NC fate in humans and inform future NC tissue engineering strategies.
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