A Review of the Collagen Orientation in the Articular Cartilage

Objective There has been a debate as to the alignment of the collagen fibers. Using a hand lens, Sir William Hunter demonstrated that the collagen fibers ran perpendicular and later aspects were supported by Benninghoff. Despite these 2 historical studies, modern technology has conflicting data on the collagen alignment. Design Ten mature New Zealand rabbits were used to obtain 40 condyle specimens. The specimens were passed through ascending grades of alcohol, subjected to critical point drying (CPD), and viewed in the scanning electron microscope. Specimens revealed splits from the dehydration process. When observing the fibers exposed within the opening of the splits, parallel fibers were observed to run in a radial direction, normal to the surface of the articular cartilage, radiating from the deep zone and arcading as they approach the surface layer. After these observations, the same samples were mechanically fractured and damaged by scalpel. Results The splits in the articular surface created deep fissures, exposing parallel bundles of collagen fibers, radiating from the deep zone and arcading as they approach the surface layer. On higher magnification, individual fibers were observed to run parallel to one another, traversing radially toward the surface of the articular cartilage and arcading. Mechanical fracturing and scalpel damage induced on the same specimens with the splits showed randomly oriented fibers. Conclusion Collagen fiber orientation corroborates aspects of Hunter’s findings and compliments Benninghoff. Investigators must be aware of the limits of their processing and imaging techniques in order to interpret collagen fiber orientation in cartilage.

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Preferred Collagen Fiber Orientation in Human Peri-implant Bone After a Short- and Long-term Loading Period: A Case Report

Journal of Oral Implantology ◽

10.1563/285.1 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 32 (4) ◽

pp. 177-181 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Tonino Traini ◽

Gabriele Pecora ◽

Giovanna Iezzi ◽

Adriano Piattelli

Keyword(s):

Dental Implants ◽

Fiber Orientation ◽

Collagen Fiber ◽

Bone Matrix ◽

Collagen Fibers ◽

Area Fraction ◽

Immediate Loading ◽

Collagen Fiber Orientation ◽

Short And Long Term

Abstract Immediate loading of dental implants offers treatment cost advantages to patients and avoids the functional and psychological problems caused by the wearing of provisional dentures. There is evidence that the amount of transverse collagen fiber orientation in bone is influenced by mechanical stresses and strains. Two osseointegrated dental implants in humans were used in the present study. Two implants inserted in the maxilla were analyzed: 1 short-term implant (implant A) immediately loaded and retrieved after 4 months of loading and 1 long-term implant (implant B) immediately loaded and retrieved after 12 years. We hypothesized that the bone functional strain caused by immediate loading correlated well with the collagen fiber organization occurring after both short- and long-term functional healing. Circularly polarized light (CPL) was used to assess the area fraction extension related to the transverse collagen fiber orientation in the bone matrix. After evaluating a total of 68 digitized images taken at ×50 magnification, birefringence measurements were performed all around the implant surfaces by using 2 central sections from each implant. The results showed that the bone-to-implant contact (BIC) percentage for implant A was 67.9% ± 9.5% (mean ± SD), whereas the BIC percentage for implant B was 74.6% ± 11.2% (mean ± SD). The area fraction extension was 2.7% ± 1.4 % (mean ± SD) for implant A, whereas the area fraction extension was 4.7% ± 1.2% (mean ± SD) for implant B. The CPL measurements of the birefringence for transverse collagen fibers of implant A vs implant B indicated that the bone fraction area difference was not high. In the bone near both dental implants, no differences were found in the amount of transverse collagen fibers. Immediate loading seemed to determine and maintain the collagen fiber's orientation over a long period.

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DT-MRI Based Numerical Simulation of Collagen Fiber Deformation in Human Articular Cartilage

ASME 2009 Summer Bioengineering Conference, Parts A and B ◽

10.1115/sbc2009-203921 ◽

2009 ◽

Author(s):

David M. Pierce ◽

Werner Trobin ◽

Siegfried Trattnig ◽

Horst Bischof ◽

Gerhard A. Holzapfel

Keyword(s):

Articular Cartilage ◽

Collagen Fiber ◽

Solid Phase ◽

Articular Surface ◽

Type Ii Collagen ◽

Collagen Fibers ◽

Human Articular Cartilage ◽

Fiber Deformation ◽

Strength And Stiffness ◽

High Level

Within the articular cartilage (composed of fluid, electrolytes, chondrocytes, collagen fibers, proteoglycans and other glycoproteins) fibers of predominantly Type II collagen provide tensile strength and stiffness to the solid phase, a proteoglycan gel. Collagen fibers exhibit a high level of structural organization usually consisting of three sub-tissue zones: (i) a superficial tangent zone with fibers which are tangential to the articular surface, (ii) a middle zone with fibers isotropically oriented, (iii) a deep zone with fibers oriented perpendicular to the subchondral bone [1]. Given the importance of this collagen fiber fabric in the mechanical properties of articular cartilage, many destructive and nondestructive experimental methods have been pursued to characterize fiber orientation and density.

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The Mechanical Consequence of Removing the Superficial Zone of Articular Cartilage

ASME 2011 Summer Bioengineering Conference, Parts A and B ◽

10.1115/sbc2011-53242 ◽

2011 ◽

Author(s):

S. M. Hosseini ◽

Y. Wu ◽

C. C. van Donkelaar ◽

K. Ito

Keyword(s):

Articular Cartilage ◽

Articular Surface ◽

Dry Weight ◽

Collagen Fibers ◽

Matrix Composition ◽

Middle Zone ◽

Deep Zone ◽

Superficial Zone ◽

Diarthrodial Joints ◽

Fluid Fraction

Articular cartilage (AC) functions as a load-bearing, low friction, and wear resistant material in diarthrodial joints. The distribution of AC matrix composition is highly depth-dependent. The fluid fraction in AC is 80% and decreases from surface to the depth of the tissue [1]. Collagen constitutes 70% of the tissue dry weight, and is highest in the superficial and deep zones and lowest in the middle zone [2]. Proteoglycans (PG’s) constitute 20–30% of the tissue dry weight. PG’s are lowest in the superficial zone, and highest in the middle zone. Although the PG content is lower in the deep zone than in the middle zone, the fixed charge density (FCD) is highest in the deep zone [3]. Apart from AC composition, its structure is also depth-dependent. In the superficial zone collagen fibers are densely packed, and are arranged parallel to the articular surface. In the middle zone collagen fibers are more randomly arranged. In the deep zone, the collagen fibers have their largest diameters and are arranged perpendicular to the subchondral bone (Fig. 1) [4].

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Collagen I membranes for tendon repair: Effect of collagen fiber orientation on cell behavior

Journal of Orthopaedic Research® ◽

10.1002/jor.20812 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 27 (6) ◽

pp. 826-832 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Antonio Gigante ◽

Eugenio Cesari ◽

Alberto Busilacchi ◽

Sandra Manzotti ◽

Kyriaki Kyriakidou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fiber Orientation ◽

Collagen Fiber ◽

Tendon Repair ◽

Collagen I ◽

Cell Behavior ◽

Collagen Fiber Orientation

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Automatic analysis of collagen fiber orientation in the outermost layer of human arteries

Pattern Analysis and Applications ◽

10.1007/s10044-004-0224-3 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 7 (3) ◽

pp. 269-284 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

P. J. Elbischger ◽

H. Bischof ◽

P. Regitnig ◽

G. A. Holzapfel

Keyword(s):

Fiber Orientation ◽

Collagen Fiber ◽

Automatic Analysis ◽

Outermost Layer ◽

Collagen Fiber Orientation ◽

Human Arteries

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India Ink Pinprick Experiments on Surface Organization of Cricoarytenoid Joints

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/jshr.2904.544 ◽

1986 ◽

Vol 29 (4) ◽

pp. 544-548 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Joel C. Kahane ◽

Alice R. Kahn

Keyword(s):

Articular Cartilage ◽

Collagen Fiber ◽

Collagen Fibers ◽

Articular Surfaces ◽

India Ink ◽

Age Related ◽

Cricoarytenoid Joint ◽

Mechanical Factors ◽

Fiber Organization

Collagen fiber organization in the articular surfaces of the cricoarytenoid joint (CAJ) was studied using a pinpricking technique used in biomechanical research in orthopedics. Four male human formalin preserved specimens (3 months to 20 years) and 6 male freshly autopsied specimens (19 to 30 yrs) were studied. Specimens were dissected using the stereomicroscope. Distinctive patterns of articular cartilage slits reflect the orientation of collagen fibers in the cricoid and arytenoid articular surfaces. The orientation of the collagen fibers reinforces the articular surfaces along the principle path of CAJ motion. No age related differences were found. This suggests that the orientation of collagen fibers in the CAJ articular surfaces is prenatally determined rather than significantly influenced by postnatal mechanical factors.

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