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Updated: Jun 9, 2026
Magnetic Resonance Elastography Methodology for the Evaluation of Tissue Engineered Construct Growth
Published on: February 9, 2012
Magnetic resonance studies of macromolecular content in engineered cartilage treated with pulsed low-intensity
Onyi N Irrechukwu1, Ping-Chang Lin, Kate Fritton
1Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Spectroscopy Section, Gerontology Research Center 4D-06, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Abstract:
Noninvasive monitoring of matrix development in tissue-engineered cartilage constructs would permit ongoing assessment with the ability to modify culture conditions during development to optimize tissue characteristics. In this study, chondrocytes seeded in a collagen hydrogel were exposed for 20 min/day to pulsed low-intensity ultrasound (PLIUS) at 30 mWcm(-2) and cultured for up to 5 weeks. Biochemical assays, histology, immunohistochemistry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were performed at weeks 3 and 5 after initiation of growth. The noninvasive MRI measurements were correlated with those from the invasive studies. In particular, MRI transverse relaxation time (T2) and magnetization transfer rate (k(m)) correlated with macromolecular content, which was increased by application of PLIUS. This indicates the sensitivity of MR techniques to PLIUS-induced changes in matrix development, and highlights the potential for noninvasive assessment of the efficacy of anabolic interventions for engineered tissue.
