ArticlePloS one2015
TNFα transport induced by dynamic loading alters biomechanics of intact intervertebral discs.
Article in PloS one, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 25 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
25 citing papers in PubMed, 43 citations in OpenAlex.
- Organ-on-a-Chip Technology: Advances in Modeling Inflammation, Neurovascularization and Nociception in Human Intervertebral Disc Degeneration.Smart medicine · 2026Review
- PHLPP1 Regulates Inflammatory Signaling in Degenerated Nucleus Pulposus Cells in Mice and Humans.Cells · 2026Article
- Complex Mechanical Loading and Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines in Intervertebral Disc Degeneration.JOR spine · 2026Article
- CT- and MRI-based endplate osteoporosis status assessment for predicting adjacent vertebral fractures after thoracolumbar percutaneous kyphoplasty: a matched comparison study.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2025Article
- Review
- Article
- Development and Degeneration of the Intervertebral Disc-Insights from Across Species.Veterinary sciences · 2023Review
- Injectable biomaterial induces regeneration of the intervertebral disc in a caprine loaded disc culture model.Biomaterials science · 2023Article
- Dynamic loading leads to increased metabolic activity and spatial redistribution of viable cell density in nucleus pulposus tissue.JOR spine · 2023Article
- Blocking toll-like receptor 4 mitigates static loading induced pro-inflammatory expression in intervertebral disc motion segments.Journal of biomechanics · 2023Article
- Controversies in spine research: Organ culture versus in vivo models for studies of the intervertebral disc.JOR spine · 2022Review
- In Vitro Studies for Investigating Creep of Intervertebral Discs under Axial Compression: A Review of Testing Environment and Results.Materials (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Article
- Spine biomechanical testing methodologies: The controversy of consensus vs scientific evidence.JOR spine · 2021Review
- Proinflammatory intervertebral disc cell and organ culture models induced by tumor necrosis factor alpha.JOR spine · 2020Article
- Article
- PreclinicalFrontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2020Article
- Inhibiting tumor necrosis factor-alpha at time of induced intervertebral disc injury limits long-term pain and degeneration in a rat model.JOR spine · 2018Article
- Accumulation and localization of macrophage phenotypes with human intervertebral disc degeneration.The spine journal : official journal of the North American Spine Society · 2018Article
- Progranulin derived engineered protein Atsttrin suppresses TNF-α-mediated inflammation in intervertebral disc degenerative disease.Oncotarget · 2017Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveIntervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is an important contributor to the development of back pain, and a key factor relating pain and degeneration are the presence of pro-inflammatory cytokines and IVD motion. There is surprisingly limited understanding of how mechanics and inflammation interact in the IVD. This study investigated interactions between mechanical loading and pro-inflammatory cytokines in a large animal organ culture model to address fundamental questions regarding (i.) how inflammatory mediators arise within the IVD, (ii.) how long inflammatory mediators persist, and (iii.) how inflammatory mediators influence IVD biomechanics.
methodsBovine caudal IVDs were cultured for 6 or 20-days under static & dynamic loading with or without exogenous TNFα in the culture medium, simulating a consequence of inflammation of the surrounding spinal tissues. TNFα transport within the IVD was assessed via immunohistochemistry. Changes in IVD structural integrity (dimensions, histology & aggrecan degradation), biomechanical behavior (Creep, Recovery & Dynamic stiffness) and pro-inflammatory cytokines in the culture medium (ELISA) were assessed.
resultsTNFα was able to penetrate intact IVDs when subjected to dynamic loading but not static loading. Once transported within the IVD, pro-inflammatory mediators persisted for 4-8 days after TNFα removal. TNFα exposure induced changes in IVD biomechanics (reduced diurnal displacements & increased dynamic stiffness). DISCUSSION: This study demonstrated that exposure to TNFα, as might occur from injured surrounding tissues, can penetrate healthy intact IVDs, induce expression of additional pro-inflammatory cytokines and alter IVD mechanical behavior. We conclude that exposure to pro-inflammatory cytokine may be an initiating event in the progression of IVD degeneration in addition to being a consequence of disease.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.