To investigate the feasibility of using neutron tomography to gain new knowledge of human articular cartilage degeneration in osteoarthritis (OA). Different sample preparation techniques were evaluated to identify maximum intra-tissue contrast. Human articular cartilage samples from 14 deceased donors (18–75 years, 9 males, 5 females) and 4 patients undergoing total knee replacement due to known OA (all female, 61–75 years) were prepared using different techniques: control in saline, treated with heavy water saline, fixed and treated in heavy water saline, and fixed and dehydrated with ethanol. Neutron tomographic imaging (isotropic voxel sizes from 7.5 to 13.5 µm) was performed at two large scale facilities. The 3D images were evaluated for gradients in hydrogen attenuation as well as compared to images from absorption X-ray tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and histology. Cartilage was distinguishable from background and other tissues in neutron tomographs. Intra-tissue contrast was highest in heavy water-treated samples, which showed a clear gradient from the cartilage surface to the bone interface. Increased neutron flux or exposure time improved image quality but did not affect the ability to detect gradients. Samples from older donors showed high variation in gradient profile, especially from donors with known OA. Neutron tomography is a viable technique for specialized studies of cartilage, particularly for quantifying properties relating to the hydrogen density of the tissue matrix or water movement in the tissue.

中文翻译：

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关节软骨的探索性中子断层扫描


探讨使用中子断层扫描获得骨关节炎（OA）中人类关节软骨退变的新知识的可行性。评估不同的样品制备技术以确定最大组织内对比度。使用不同的技术制备来自 14 名已故捐献者（18-75 岁，9 名男性，5 名女性）和 4 名因已知 OA 而接受全膝关节置换术的患者（均为女性，61-75 岁）的人类关节软骨样本：生理盐水对照，重盐水处理，重盐水固定处理，乙醇固定脱水。中子断层扫描成像（各向同性体素尺寸从 7.5 到 13.5 µm）是在两个大型设施中进行的。评估 3D 图像的氢衰减梯度，并与吸收 X 射线断层扫描、磁共振成像和组织学图像进行比较。在中子断层扫描中，软骨与背景和其他组织有区别。经过重水处理的样品的组织内对比度最高，显示从软骨表面到骨界面的清晰梯度。增加中子通量或曝光时间可以改善图像质量，但不会影响检测梯度的能力。来自老年捐献者的样本在梯度分布上表现出很大的变化，特别是来自患有已知 OA 的捐献者。中子断层扫描是一种用于软骨专门研究的可行技术，特别是用于量化与组织基质的氢密度或组织中的水运动相关的特性。