Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research ›› 2026, Vol. 30 ›› Issue (28): 7280-7286.doi: 10.12307/2026.400

Previous Articles     Next Articles

Construction of an early knee osteoarthritis rat model: CatWalk-based gait analysis and evaluation

Bai Xue1, 2, Tian Yukui1, 2, Guo Lei1, 2, Shi Mengni3, Cui Xiaofeng1, 2, Wang Cheng1, Li Jingxian4, Zhu Qingguang3, Liu Junchang1, 2   

  1. 1College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi 830017, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China; 2The Fourth Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi 830000, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China; 3Yueyang Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai 200437, China; 4Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa K1N 6N5, Canada
  • Received:2025-06-30 Revised:2025-11-15 Online:2026-10-08 Published:2026-02-10
  • Contact: Liu Junchang, MS, Chief physician, Professor, Doctoral supervisor, College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi 830017, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China; The Fourth Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi 830000, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China
  • About author:Bai Xue, PhD candidate, Attending physician, Lecturer, College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi 830017, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China; The Fourth Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi 830000, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China
  • Supported by:
    the National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 82360979 (to LJC); the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Scientific and Technological Innovation Team Program (Tianshan Talent Team Project), No. 2022TSYCTD0008 (to LJC)

PDF

5

Abstract: ACKGROUND: Studies on existing animal models of knee osteoarthritis predominantly focus on mechanical injury factors but fail to simulate and observe the “cold-dampness obstruction” syndrome characteristics in traditional Chinese medicine. 
OBJECTIVE: To construct a traditional Chinese medicine-Western medicine integrated knee osteoarthritis model for cold-dampness obstruction syndrome and validate its efficacy via a multidimensional assessment. 
METHODS: Twenty-four male Sprague-Dawley rats (SPF-grade) were randomly divided into sham surgery, model, and cold-dampness obstruction groups. Both the model and cold-dampness obstruction groups underwent anterior cruciate ligament transection. The cold-dampness obstruction group was exposed to an artificial cold-dampness environment (10.5°C, 90% humidity, 4 h/d, for 4 weeks) starting from 14 days post-surgery. At baseline, 1 and 2 weeks after modeling, and 4 weeks after cold-dampness obstruction intervention, all groups underwent following assessments: traditional Chinese medicine syndrome scoring, automated gait analysis using the CatWalk system, and histological examination with Mankin scoring of the right hindlimb knee joint.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) Traditional Chinese medicine syndrome scoring: The cold-dampness obstruction group exhibited significant lethargy, hypoactivity, diarrhea, cyanotic tongue coloration, dull fur coat, decreased food intake, and attenuated weight gain (P < 0.01). (2) CatWalk gait parameters: One week after modeling, the model and cold-dampness obstruction groups showed significant differences compared with the sham surgery group in terms of hindlimb maximum contact intensity, hindlimb footprint length, hindlimb peak intensity, hindlimb average intensity of 15 maximum pixels, and hindlimb swing phase (all P < 0.01). The cold-dampness obstruction group showed significantly reduced hindlimb swing speed (all P < 0.05). After 4 weeks of cold-dampness intervention, the cold-dampness obstruction group displayed significant reductions in hindlimb maximum contact intensity, peak intensity, and average intensity of 15 maximum pixels compared with the sham surgery group (P < 0.01), along with prolonged hindlimb swing phase (P < 0.01) and decreased swing speed (P < 0.05). (3) Histopathology: Mankin scores significantly increased in the model and cold-dampness obstruction groups compared with the sham surgery group (P < 0.01), while the score in the cold-dampness obstruction group was higher than that in the model group (P < 0.01). These findings indicate that anterior cruciate ligament transection combined with cold-dampness environment can successfully establish a rat model of early knee osteoarthritis with cold-dampness obstruction syndrome. Quantitative gait analysis using the CatWalk system, combined with standardized traditional Chinese medicine syndrome scoring, provides an objective evaluation framework for investigating the mechanisms of traditional Chinese medicine-based osteoarthritis models.

Key words: knee osteoarthritis, cold-dampness obstruction syndrome, anterior cruciate ligament transection, CatWalk gait analysis

CLC Number: