Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009 Apr;27(4):536-9.
doi: 10.1002/jor.20767.

The effect of paraformaldehyde fixation on the delayed gadolinium-enhanced MRI of cartilage (dGEMRIC) measurement

Arushi Dugar  1 , Michelle L Farley, Angeline L Wang, Mary B Goldring, Steven R Goldring, Bryan H Swaim, Benjamin E Bierbaum, Deborah Burstein, Martha L Gray
Affiliations

The effect of paraformaldehyde fixation on the delayed gadolinium-enhanced MRI of cartilage (dGEMRIC) measurement

Arushi Dugar et al. J Orthop Res. 2009 Apr.

Abstract

The delayed Gadolinium-Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Cartilage (dGEMRIC) method allows for both qualitative and quantitative measurement of the spatial distribution of glycosaminoglycan [GAG] in excised cartilage. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of paraformaldehyde fixation on dGEMRIC measurements. Five bovine and seven human cartilage pieces were punched into 5-mm plugs, fixed for 18 h in 4% paraformaldehyde solution, and washed. The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) parameter T1 was measured prior and post fixation in cartilage without (T1(0)) and with (T1(Gd)), the ionically charged MRI contrast agent Gd(DTPA)(2-). Images of tissue before and after fixation were qualitatively very similar. The ratios of T1(0), T1(Gd), and calculated [GAG] after fixation, relative to before fixation, were near or slightly higher than 1 for both bovine cartilage (1.01 +/- 0.01, 1.04 +/- 0.02, 1.05 +/- 0.03, respectively) and for human cartilage (0.96 +/- 0.11, 1.03 +/- 0.05, 1.09 +/- 0.13). Thus, these data suggest that dGEMRIC can be used on previously fixed samples to assess the three dimensional spatial distribution of GAG.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Representative dGEMRIC images of bovine and human cartilage before and after paraformaldehyde fixation. The similarity between the before and after images supports the observations made from the averaged data (in Table 1), and suggests that dGEMRIC imaging can be used in previously fixed tissue.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Bashir A, Gray ML, Burstein D. Gd-DTPA2 as a measure of cartilage degradation. Magn Reson Med. 1996;36:665–673. - PubMed
    1. Bashir A, Gray ML, Hartke J, et al. Nondestructive imaging of human cartilage glycosaminoglycan concentration by MRI. Magn Reson Med. 1999;41:857–865. - PubMed
    1. Allen RG, Burstein D, Gray ML. Monitoring glycosaminoglycan replenishment in cartilage explants with gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging. J Orthop Res. 1999;17:430–436. - PubMed
    1. Samosky JT, Burstein D, Eric Grimson W, et al. Spatially-localized correlation of dGEMRIC-measured GAG distribution and mechanical stiffness in the human tibial plateau. J Orthop Res. 2005;23:93–101. - PubMed
    1. Williams A, Gillis A, McKenzie C, et al. Glycosaminoglycan distribution in cartilage as determined by delayed gadolinium-enhanced MRI of cartilage (dGEMRIC): potential clinical applications. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2004;182:167–172. - PubMed

Publication types