Ceramic Physics Laboratory and Research Institute for Nanoscience, Kyoto Institute of Technology, Sakyo-ku, Matsugasaki, 606-8585 Kyoto, Japan.
Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Osaka University Medical School, 2-2 Yamadaoka, Suita, 565-0871 Osaka, Japan.
J Mech Behav Biomed Mater. 2014 Mar;31:77-85. doi: 10.1016/j.jmbbm.2013.02.014. Epub 2013 Mar 5.
A preliminary investigation into the diagnostic potential of Raman spectroscopy for assessing pathological articular cartilage was conducted. Five arthritic human tibial cartilages retrieved after total knee arthroplasty were examined using near-infrared (NIR) Raman spectroscopy excited with 647.1nm lines of a Kr-ion laser. A "healthy" cartilage obtained from cadaver donor was also examined as a control sample. Degradation severity was first visually classified into five grades (Grade 0-VI) on the surface of both medial and lateral zones in each tibial plateau, according to the Collins scale. Raman spectra were then collected from selected zones with different damage severity. A systematic increase in relative intensity ratio between the Raman bands located at 1241 and 1269cm(-1) (amide III doublet) was observed with increasing degradation grades, which could be related to structural changes under loading in type II collagen. This finding suggests that the present spectroscopic approach might be useful for recognizing and quantitatively assessing the degree of osteoarthritis (OA) in its early manifestation stage.
本研究初步探讨了拉曼光谱在评估病理性关节软骨方面的诊断潜力。使用波长为 647.1nm 的 Kr 离子激光激发近红外（NIR）拉曼光谱，对 5 例全膝关节置换术后获得的关节炎人类胫骨软骨进行了检测。同时，还对来自尸体供体的“健康”软骨进行了检测作为对照样本。根据 Collins 分级标准，首先在每个胫骨平台的内侧和外侧区域的表面上，根据 Collins 分级标准将退变严重程度进行视觉分类为五个等级（Grade 0-VI）。然后，从具有不同损伤严重程度的选定区域收集拉曼光谱。随着退变等级的增加，位于 1241 和 1269cm(-1)（酰胺 III 双峰）处的拉曼带的相对强度比呈系统性增加，这可能与 II 型胶原在载荷下的结构变化有关。这一发现表明，目前的光谱方法可能有助于识别和定量评估早期骨关节炎（OA）的程度。
