Value of Micro-CT for Monitoring Spinal Microvascular Changes after Chronic Spinal Cord Compression

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Hou-Qing Long¹  Wen-Han Xie¹  Wen-Li Chen³  Wen-Lin Xie²  Jing-Hui Xu¹ 

[1] Department of Spine Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510000, China; E-Mails:;Department of Pathology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510000, China; E-Mail:;Department of Neurosurgery, the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510000, China; E-Mail:

关键词: chronic spinal cord compression;    micro-computer tomography;    immunohistochemistry;    somatosensory evoked potential;    blood vessels;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijms150712061

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Neurological degeneration can occur after compression of the spinal cord. It is widely accepted that spinal cord compression leads to ischemic lesions and ultimately neurological dysfunction due to a narrowed spinal canal. Therefore, an in-depth understanding of the pathogenesis of spinal cord compression injury is required to help develop effective clinical interventions. In the present study, we propose a new method of quantitative 3D micro-CT to observe microvascular events in a chronic spinal cord compression rat model. A total of 36 rats were divided into two groups: sham control group (n = 12) and compressive spinal cord injury group (n = 24). Rats were scarified at four weeks after surgery. In each group, CD34 micro-vessel immunohistochemical staining was performed in half of the animals, while micro-CT scanning was performed in the other half. Microvessel density (MVD) was measured after immunohistochemical staining, while the vascular index (VI) was measured in 3D micro-CT. In comparison with sham control, abnormal somatosensory evoked potentials (SEP) can be seen in all 24 cases of the compression group, and VI shows the amount of microvessels reduced consistently and significantly (p < 0.01). A significant correlation is also found between MVD and VI (r = 0.95, p < 0.01). These data suggest that quantitative 3D micro-CT is a sensitive and promising tool for investigating microvascular changes during chronic compressive spinal cord injury.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.