Nemery Elodie, Gabriel Annick, Piret Joëlle, Antoine Nadine
Anatomy Unit, Department of Morphology and Pathology, FARAH Research Center, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
Histology Unit, Department of Morphology and Pathology, FARAH Research Center, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
J Anat. 2016 Dec;229(6):791-799. doi: 10.1111/joa.12517. Epub 2016 Jun 27.
In athletic horses, diseases leading to lameness are of great importance due to the loss of performance and the resultant economic concerns. Although stifle lesions are frequent in the hindlimb, due to the large size and complexity of the joint, and although meniscal tears have been identified as the most common soft tissue injuries in this joint, little is known about the mechanism that causes the painful sensation and thus the lameness. The aim of our study was to highlight any peripheral fibres involved in meniscal nociception in five macroscopically sound cranial horns of the equine medial meniscus, which has been one of the most common sites reported for equine meniscal injuries. Immunohistochemical stainings were performed using antibodies against Substance P in order to identify nociceptive fibres; against tyrosine hydroxylase for detecting postganglionic sympathetic fibres; and against glial fibrillary acidic proteins in order to identify Schwann cells. Our work highlights for the first time the presence of nociceptive and sympathetic fibres in equine menisci. They were found in the abaxial part of the cranial horn of the equine medial meniscus. This study suggests that when the abaxial part is injured, the meniscus itself could be the source of pain. These findings could provide a better understanding of the clinical presentation of horses with meniscal injury and contribute towards improving therapeutic strategies to alleviate pain in cases of equine meniscal injury.
在竞技马匹中，导致跛行的疾病因性能丧失和由此产生的经济问题而极为重要。尽管后肢的 stifle 损伤很常见，这是由于该关节的尺寸大且结构复杂，而且尽管半月板撕裂已被确定为该关节最常见的软组织损伤，但对于导致疼痛感觉进而引起跛行的机制却知之甚少。我们研究的目的是在马内侧半月板的五个宏观上正常的前角中突出任何参与半月板伤害感受的外周纤维，该部位是马半月板损伤最常报道的部位之一。使用针对 P 物质的抗体进行免疫组织化学染色以识别伤害感受纤维；使用针对酪氨酸羟化酶的抗体来检测节后交感神经纤维；使用针对胶质纤维酸性蛋白的抗体来识别雪旺细胞。我们的工作首次突出了马半月板中伤害感受纤维和交感神经纤维的存在。它们在马内侧半月板前角的远轴部分被发现。这项研究表明，当远轴部分受伤时，半月板本身可能是疼痛的来源。这些发现可以更好地理解马半月板损伤的临床表现，并有助于改进治疗策略以减轻马半月板损伤病例中的疼痛。
