ArticleScientific reports2018
Molecular pain markers correlate with pH-sensitive MRI signal in a pig model of disc degeneration.
Article in Scientific reports, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06169488 (The Lumbar Interbody Fusion vs. Multidisciplinary Rehabilitation), which is not on this map. Cited by 15 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.
The Lumbar Interbody Fusion vs. Multidisciplinary Rehabilitation (LIFEHAB) Trial
Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 19 citations in OpenAlex.
- Article
- Surviving the Nucleus Pulposus Desert: Next-Generation Strategies for Intervertebral Disc Cell Therapy.JOR spine · 2026Article
- Diagnostic Features of Discogenic Low Back Pain: A Narrative Review and Suggested Areas for Future Research and Clinical Practice.JOR spine · 2026Review
- CEST MRI: Translational prospects for intervertebral disc degeneration - from basic research to clinical applications.Journal of orthopaedic translation · 2026Review
- What a pain in the back: etiology, diagnosis and future treatment directions for discogenic low back pain.Bone research · 2025Review
- Effects of pH on opioid receptor activation and implications for drug design.Biophysical journal · 2024Review
- pH: A major player in degenerative intervertebral disks.JOR spine · 2024Review
- Assessment of the antinociceptive, respiratory-depressant, and reinforcing effects of the low pKNeuropharmacology · 2024Article
- Review
- Enzymatically Bioactive Nucleus Pulposus Matrix Hydrogel Microspheres for Exogenous Stem Cells Therapy and Endogenous Repair Strategy to Achieve Disc Regeneration.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2024Article
- Imaging Evaluation of Intervertebral Disc Degeneration and Painful Discs-Advances and Challenges in Quantitative MRI.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Intradiscal quantitative chemical exchange saturation transfer MRI signal correlates with discogenic pain in human patients.Scientific reports · 2021Observational
- Lactate Efflux From Intervertebral Disc Cells Is Required for Maintenance of Spine Health.Journal of bone and mineral research : the official journal of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research · 2020Article
- Oxymatrine Liposomes for Intervertebral Disc Treatment: Formulation, in vitro and vivo Assessments.Drug design, development and therapy · 2020Article
- Human iPSCs can be differentiated into notochordal cells that reduce intervertebral disc degeneration in a porcine model.Theranostics · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is a leading cause of chronic low back pain that affects millions of people every year. Yet identification of the specific IVD causing this pain is based on qualitative visual interpretation rather than objective findings. One possible approach to diagnosing pain-associated IVD could be to identify acidic IVDs, as decreased pH within an IVD has been postulated to mediate discogenic pain. We hypothesized that quantitative chemical exchange saturation transfer (qCEST) MRI could detect pH changes in IVDs, and thence be used to diagnose pathologically painful IVDs objectively and noninvasively. To test this hypothesis, a surgical model of IVD degeneration in Yucatan minipigs was used. Direct measurement of pH inside the degenerated IVDs revealed a significant drop in pH after degeneration, which correlated with a significant increase in the qCEST signal. Gene analysis of harvested degenerated IVDs revealed significant upregulation of pain-, nerve- and inflammatory-related markers after IVD degeneration. A strong positive correlation was observed between the expression of pain markers and the increase in the qCEST signal. Collectively, these findings suggest that this approach might be used to identify which IVD is causing low back pain, thereby providing valuable guidance for pain and surgical management.
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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.