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MR microimaging of articular cartilage and contrast enhancement by manganese ions
Author(s) -
Kusaka Y.,
Gründer W.,
Rumpel H.,
Dannhauer K.H.,
Gersonde K.
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
magnetic resonance in medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.696
H-Index - 225
eISSN - 1522-2594
pISSN - 0740-3194
DOI - 10.1002/mrm.1910240114
Subject(s) - cartilage , articular cartilage , chemistry , magnetic resonance imaging , contrast (vision) , nuclear magnetic resonance , materials science , biomedical engineering , biophysics , anatomy , osteoarthritis , pathology , medicine , biology , optics , radiology , alternative medicine , physics
Saline solutions of manganese ions (Mn 2+ ) were used as articular contrast agents in magnetic resonance microscopy (9.4 T) of cartilage of chicken femoral condyles and pig temporomandibular joints. The diffusion of Mn 2+ from the articular surface into the cartilage matrix led to a strong contrast enhancement in the cartilage. The combination of the high spatial resolution and the contrast enhancement allowed the visualization of fine structures (tissue types) in the cartilage, which correlate with the tissue zones in histological sections stained with cationic dyes. We assume that the electrostatic interactions between the negatively charged groups of the proteoglycans and Mn 2+ are most important for the mechanism of contrast enhancement. Hence, the different signal intensities of the various zones of cartilage indicate differences in density of proteoglycans. The intraarticular injection of the cationic contrast agent could improve the possibility of an early diagnosis of cartilage dysfunction and degeneration. © 1992 Academic Press, Inc.