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. 2011 Dec 19;41(1):20-5.
doi: 10.1038/laban0112-20.

A proposed model of naturally occurring osteoarthritis in the domestic rabbit

Boaz Arzi  1 , Erik R Wisner, Daniel J Huey, Philip H Kass, Jerry Hu, Kyriacos A Athanasiou
Affiliations

A proposed model of naturally occurring osteoarthritis in the domestic rabbit

Boaz Arzi et al. Lab Anim (NY). .

Abstract

Osteoarthritis affects one in eight American adults over the age of 25 y and is a leading cause of chronic disability in the US. Translational research to investigate treatments for this naturally occurring joint disease requires an appropriate animal model. The authors conducted a retrospective study to assess the potential of naturally occurring osteoarthritis in the domestic rabbit as a model of the human disease. Analysis of radiographic images showed that the presence and severity of osteoarthritis were significantly influenced by both age and body weight. The most commonly affected joints were the knee and the hip. The findings reported here suggest that the rabbit is an excellent model of spontaneously arising osteoarthritis that may be useful in translational research pertaining to the human disease.

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Conflict of interest statement

No financial support or benefits were derived from commercial sources, and there is no conflict of interest of any of the authors.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A. Normal coxofemoral joint; B. Mild osteoarthritis. Minimal periarticular new bone formation arising from the distal femur and proximal tibia (arrows); C. Moderate osteoarthritis. Minimal periarticular new bone formation involving the medial aspect of the proximal tibia (right arrow), meniscal mineralization (arrowhead), and a separate osseous body within the joint space; D. Marked osteoarthitis, pronounced periarticular new bone formation involving the distal femur and proximal tibia (arrows, dashed lines), architectural remodeling of subchondral bone in the proximal tibia (arrowhead), subchondral sclerosis of the lateral and medial femoral condyles.
Figure 2
Figure 2
A. Normal femorotibial joint; B. Mild osteoarthritis. Minimal periarticular new bone formation (arrow), regional joint space narrowing (arrowhead); C. Moderate osteoarthritis. Mild suchondral bone sclerosis (arrow), remodeling of the femoral head and neck associated with new bone formation (small arrow); D. Marked osteoarthritis. Pronounced coxafemoral subluxation, large osseous body within the joint space, remodeling of femoral head and neck and acetabulum.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The involvement and the severity of radiographic changes of OA of each of the examined joints. The most commonly affected joints were the hip and the knee.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The influence of age on the development of OA. As age increased, the prevalence of OA increased (P<0.0001). As age increased, the maximum OA score for the hip and the knee increased (P<0.001).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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