Intervertebral disc Degeneration: The Role of Nucleus Pulposus cell/Neural cell Interaction

An association between painful lumbar intervertebral discs (IVDs) and innervation deep with the nucleus pulposus (NP) of the degenerate IVD has been highlighted by a number of studies. However the mechanisms responsible for driving this innervation and hence the pathogenesis of symptomatic IVD degeneration is complex. The extracellular matrix (ECM) component aggrecan has been shown to inhibit neurite outgrowth and a role for cell mteractions via the e production of soluble mediators from degenerate disc cells, hypothesised to be neurotrophic factors, has been proposed. This study was undertaken to investigate NP cell/neural cell interactions in relation to degeneration of the IVD.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo