Lack of skeletal muscle contraction disrupts fibrous tissue morphogenesis in the developing murine knee

Externally applied forces, such as those generated through skeletal muscle contraction, are important to embryonic joint formation, and their loss can result in gross morphologic defects including joint fusion. While the absence of muscle contraction in the developing chick embryo leads to dissociation of dense connective tissue structures of the knee and ultimately joint fusion, the central knee joint cavitates whereas the patellofemoral joint does not in murine models lacking skeletal muscle contraction, suggesting a milder phenotype. These differential results suggest that muscle contraction may not have as prominent of a role in the growth and development of dense connective tissues of the knee. To explore this question, we investigated the formation of the menisci, tendon, and ligaments of the developing knee in two murine models that lack muscle contraction. We found that while the knee joint does cavitate, there were multiple abnormalities in the menisci, patellar tendon, and cruciate ligaments. The initial cellular condensation of the menisci was disrupted and dissociation was observed at later embryonic stages. The initial cell condensation of the tendon and ligaments were less affected than the meniscus, but these tissues contained cells with hyper-elongated nuclei and displayed diminished growth. Interestingly, lack of muscle contraction led to the formation of an ectopic ligamentous structure in the anterior region of the joint as well. These results indicate that muscle forces are essential for the continued growth and maturation of these structures during this embryonic period.

Fixation stability dictates the differentiation pathway of periosteal progenitor cells in fracture repair

This study compared fracture repair stabilized by intramedullary pin (IMP) or external fixation (EF) in GFP reporter mice. A modified IMP was used as control while EF utilized six needles inserted transversely through the tibia and into a segment of a syringe barrel. X-rays taken at days 0, 14, and 35 showed that IMP resulted in significant three-dimensional deformity with a large callus while EF showed minimal deformity and callus formation. Cryohistological analysis of IMP at day 14 confirmed a large ColX-RFPchry+ callus surrounded by woven bone (Col3.6-GFPcyan) and TRAP+ osteoclasts with mature bone (hOC-GFPtpz) at the base. By day 35, cartilaginous components had been resorbed and an outer cortical shell (OCS) showed evidence of inward modeling. In contrast, the EF at day 14 showed no evidence of cartilage formation. Instead, periosteal-derived osteoblasts (Col3.6-GFPcyan) entered the fracture cleft and formed woven bone that spanned the marrow space. By day 35, mature bone had formed that was contiguous with the opposing cortical bone. Fracture site stability greatly affects the cellular response during repair and must be considered in the preclinical models that test therapies for improving fracture healing.