Abstract:

BACKGROUND: In recent years, a large number of reports have shown that in lumbar degenerative diseases, inflammatory cytokines play an important role, and the signals of the degenerative lumbar endplate and regional vertebral endplate are changed on MRI.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of tumor necrosis factor alpha and matrix metalloproteinase 3 expression on Modic changes of lumbar endplate and the bone under endplate on MRI.
METHODS: In the experimental group, 20 lumbar endplates were obtained during surgery from the patients with lumbar degeneration treated by lumbar interbody fusion. Both Modic type Ⅰ and Modic type Ⅱ contained 10 cases. As the control group, 10 lumbar endplates were also got during surgery from patients with trauma of vertebra treated with lumbar interbody fusion. The expression of tumor necrosis factor alpha and matrix metalloproteinase 3 in lumbar endplate was tested by immunohistochemical staining.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The positive ratio of tumor necrosis factor alpha and matrix metalloproteinase 3 in the experimental group was significantly higher than that in the control group (P < 0.05); the expressions of tumor necrosis factor alpha and matrix metalloproteinase 3 in Modic type Ⅰ were significantly higher than those in Modic type Ⅱ (P < 0.05); in the experimental group, the expression of matrix metalloproteinase 3 showed no correlation with the expression of tumor necrosis factor alpha. The expression of tumor necrosis factor alpha and matrix metalloproteinase 3 may promote vertebral endplates degeneration; there was significant difference of the tumor necrosis factor alpha and matrix metalloproteinase 3 expression between different Modic types.