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Jiangming Yu,1 Zhengguang Xiao,2 Ronghua Yu,1 Xiaoming Liu,1 Haojie Chen1 1Department of Orthopedics, Tongren Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Radiology, Tongren Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Haojie Chen, Department of Orthopedics, Tongren Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200336, People’s Republic of China, Email chenhaojie97@126.comBackground: Thoracolumbar vertebral fractures are common pathological fractures caused by osteoporosis in the elderly. These fractures are challenging to detect. This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic value of Hounsfield units for osteoporotic thoracolumbar vertebral non-compression fractures in elderly patients with low-energy fractures.Methods: The retrospective case-control study included elderly patients diagnosed with osteoporotic thoracolumbar vertebral fractures and non-fractured patients who underwent computed tomography examinations for lumbar vertebra issues during July 2017 and June 2020.Results: This study included 216 patients with fractures (38 males and 178 females; average age: 77.28± 8.68 years) and 124 patients without fractures (21 males and 103 females; average age: 75.35± 9.57 years). The difference in Hounsfield units of the target (intermediate) vertebral body significantly differed between the two groups (54.74 ± 21.84 vs 5.86 ± 5.14; p< 0.001). The ratios of Hounsfield units were also significantly different between the two groups (1.38 ± 1.60 vs 0.13 ± 0.23; p< 0.001). The cut-off value for the difference in Hounsfield units to detect osteoporotic spine fractures was 25.35, with high sensitivity (98.5%), specificity (99.9%), and the area under the curve (AUC) (0.999, 95% CI: 0.999– 1). The cut-off value for the odds ratio of Hounsfield units was 0.260, with high sensitivity (99.1%), specificity (92.7%), and AUC (0.970, 95% CI: 0.949– 0.992).Conclusion: The difference between Hounsfield units and the odds ratio of Hounsfield units might help diagnose osteoporotic thoracolumbar vertebral non-compression fractures in elderly patients with low-energy fractures.Keywords: multi-slice spiral computed tomography, thoracolumbar vertebrae, fractures, osteoporosis, morphological changes

It has been well-established that the number of vertebrae is associated with body size and meat productivity. In current study we utilized a digital radiography (DR) technology to detect the number of thoracolumbar vertebrae in live donkeys. For this purpose, we introduced for the first time a groundbreaking device designed by our team for assessing thoracolumbar vertebrae number traits in equids, employing a sample of 1,000 donkeys sourced from five distinct donkey farms. This assessment incorporates a range of crucial body metrics, including body height, length, and various other measurements. Subsequently, our study determined the number of thoracolumbar vertebrae in 112 donkeys, utilizing the DR system. These findings were further validated through post-mortem evaluations conducted by slaughtering the donkeys. Our findings demonstrated a remarkable resemblance between the thoracolumbar vertebrae numbers visualized through the DR system in live donkeys and those obtained via slaughter verification. In conclusion, this research underscores the accuracy and effectiveness of the DR system for the detection of thoracolumbar vertebrae in live donkeys, which might be helpful for assessing the body size and meat productivity. We also recommended the utilization of DR system for counting thoracolumbar vertebrae in other animals in live state and could be a useful addition to livestock business industry for the prediction of body size and meat productivity efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Previous studies have shown that the protein kinase cGMP-dependent 2 (PRKG2) gene is associated with dwarfism in humans, dogo Argentines, and Angus cattle, as well as with height and osteoblastogenesis in humans. Therefore, the PRKG2 gene was used as the target gene to explore whether this gene is associated with several thoracolumbar vertebrae and carcass traits in Dezhou donkeys. Results In this study, fifteen SNPs were identified by targeted sequencing, all of which were located in introns of the PRKG2 gene. Association analysis illustrated that the g.162153251 G > A, g.162156524 C > T, g.162158453 C > T and, g.162163775 T > G were significantly different from carcass weight. g.162166224 G > A, g.162166654 T > A, g.162167165 C > A, g.162167314 A > C and, g.162172653 G > C were significantly associated with the number of thoracic vertebrae. g.162140112 A > G was significantly associated with the number and the length of lumbar vertebrae, and g.162163775 T > G was significantly associated with the total number of thoracolumbar vertebrae. Conclusion Overall, the results of this study suggest that PRKG2 gene polymorphism can be used as a molecular marker to breed high-quality Dezhou donkeys.

Abstract Objective We aimed to observe the clinical effect of single-stage posterior surgery on HIV-positive patients with thoracolumbar tuberculosis. Methods From October 2015 to October 2019, 13 HIV-positive patients with thoracolumbar tuberculosis who underwent single-stage posterior surgery were retrospectively analyzed (observation group), and 13 HIV-negative patients with thoracolumbar tuberculosis who were matched with the gender, age, operative site, and surgical approach during the same period were selected as the control group. Postoperative complications, hemoglobin, albumin, CD4+T lymphocyte count, operative site, operative time, and blood loss were recorded between the two groups. The clinical efficacy was evaluated by the visual analog scale (VAS), American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) scale, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), kyphotic angle, correction rate of kyphosis, angle loss, and bone graft fusion time. Results In the observation group, 7 patients had postoperative complications, including 1 patient with cerebrospinal fluid leakage, 1 patient with nerve root irritation, 1 patient with an opportunistic infection, and 4 with delayed wound healing. In the control group, 2 patients developed postoperative complications, including 1 with nerve root irritation and 1 with delayed wound healing. There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of postoperative complications between the two groups (P > 0.05). CD4+T lymphocyte count, hemoglobin, and albumin in HIV-positive patients with postoperative complications were statistically different from those without postoperative complications (P all 0.05). Conclusion Single-stage posterior surgery for HIV-positive patients with thoracolumbar tuberculosis could achieve satisfactory clinical efficacy through comprehensive preoperative evaluation, standardized perioperative antiviral and anti-tuberculosis treatments, and prevention of postoperative complications.

Background: Previous studies have shown that the protein kinase cGMP-dependent 2 (PRKG2) gene is associated with dwarfism in humans, dogo Argentines, and Angus cattle, as well as with height and osteoblastogenesis in humans. Therefore, the PRKG2 gene was used as the target gene to explore whether this gene is associated with several thoracolumbar vertebrae and carcass traits in Dezhou donkeys. Results: In this study, fifteen SNPs were identified by targeted sequencing, all of which were located in introns of the PRKG2 gene. Association analysis illustrated that the g.162153251 G > A, g.162156524 C > T, g.162158453 C > T and, g.162163775 T > G were significantly different from carcass weight. g.162166224 G > A, g.162166654 T > A, g.162167165 C > A, g.162167314 A > C and, g.162172653 G > C were significantly associated with the number of thoracic vertebrae. g.162140112 A > G was significantly associated with the number and the length of lumbar vertebrae, and g.162163775 T > G was significantly associated with the total number of thoracolumbar vertebrae. Conclusion: Overall, the results of this study suggest that PRKG2 gene polymorphism can be used as a molecular marker to breed high-quality Dezhou donkeys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Body size is often hypothesized to facilitate or constrain morphological diversity in the cranial, appendicular, and axial skeletons. However, how overall body shape scales with body size (i.e., body shape allometry) and whether these scaling patterns differ between ecological groups remains poorly investigated. Here, we test whether and how the relationships between body shape, body size, and limb lengths differ among species with different locomotor specializations, and describe the underlying morphological components that contribute to body shape evolution among squirrel (Sciuridae) ecotypes. We quantified the body size and shape of 87 squirrel species from osteological specimens held at museum collections. Using phylogenetic comparative methods, we first found that body shape and its underlying morphological components scale allometrically with body size, but these allometric patterns differ among squirrel ecotypes: chipmunks and gliding squirrels exhibited more elongate bodies with increasing body sizes whereas ground squirrels exhibited more robust bodies with increasing body size. Second, we found that only ground squirrels exhibit a relationship between forelimb length and body shape, where more elongate species exhibit relatively shorter forelimbs. Third, we found that the relative length of the ribs and elongation or shortening of the thoracic region contributes the most to body shape evolution across squirrels. Overall, our work contributes to the growing understanding of mammalian body shape evolution and how it is influenced by body size and locomotor ecology, in this case from robust subterranean to gracile gliding squirrels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Body size is often hypothesized to facilitate or constrain morphological diversity in the cranial, appendicular, and axial skeletons. However, how overall body shape scales with body size (i.e., body shape allometry) and whether these scaling patterns differ between ecological groups remains poorly investigated. Here, we test whether and how the relationships between body shape, body size, and limb lengths differ among species with different locomotor specializations, and describe the underlying morphological components that contribute to body shape evolution among squirrel (Sciuridae) ecotypes. We quantified the body size and shape of 87 squirrel species from osteological specimens held at museum collections. Using phylogenetic comparative methods, we first found that body shape and its underlying morphological components scale allometrically with body size, but these allometric patterns differ among squirrel ecotypes: chipmunks and gliding squirrels exhibited more elongate bodies with increasing body sizes whereas ground squirrels exhibited more robust bodies with increasing body size. Second, we found that only ground squirrels exhibit a relationship between forelimb length and body shape, where more elongate species exhibit relatively shorter forelimbs. Third, we found that the relative length of the ribs and elongation or shortening of the thoracic region contributes the most to body shape evolution across squirrels. Overall, our work contributes to the growing understanding of mammalian body shape evolution and how it is influenced by body size and locomotor ecology, in this case from robust subterranean to gracile gliding squirrels.

Objective: We aimed to observe the clinical effect of single-stage posterior surgery on HIV-positive patients with thoracolumbar tuberculosis. Methods: From October 2015 to October 2019, 13 HIV-positive patients with thoracolumbar tuberculosis who underwent single-stage posterior surgery were retrospectively analyzed (observation group), and 13 HIV-negative patients with thoracolumbar tuberculosis who were matched with the gender, age, operative site, and surgical approach during the same period were selected as the control group. Postoperative complications, hemoglobin, albumin, CD4+T lymphocyte count, operative site, operative time, and blood loss were recorded between the two groups. The clinical efficacy was evaluated by the visual analog scale (VAS), American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) scale, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), kyphotic angle, correction rate of kyphosis, angle loss, and bone graft fusion time. Results: In the observation group, 7 patients had postoperative complications, including 1 patient with cerebrospinal fluid leakage, 1 patient with nerve root irritation, 1 patient with an opportunistic infection, and 4 with delayed wound healing. In the control group, 2 patients developed postoperative complications, including 1 with nerve root irritation and 1 with delayed wound healing. There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of postoperative complications between the two groups (P > 0.05). CD4+T lymphocyte count, hemoglobin, and albumin in HIV-positive patients with postoperative complications were statistically different from those without postoperative complications (P all < 0.05). No tuberculosis recurrence was found at the last follow-up, ESR and CRP returned to normal, and there were no statistically significant differences in bone graft fusion time, VAS score, ASIA scale, correction rate of kyphosis, and angle loss between two groups (P all > 0.05). Conclusion: Single-stage posterior surgery for HIV-positive patients with thoracolumbar tuberculosis could achieve satisfactory clinical efficacy through comprehensive preoperative evaluation, standardized perioperative antiviral and anti-tuberculosis treatments, and prevention of postoperative complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of thoracolumbar vertebrae in Dezhou donkeys varies from 22 to 24 and is associated with body size and carcass traits. In mammals, the latent transforming growth factor beta binding protein 2 (LTBP2) has been found to have some functions in the development of thoracolumbar vertebrae. The relationship between LTBP2 and TLN (the number of thoracolumbar vertebrae) of Dezhou donkeys is yet to be reported. The purposes of this study are as follows: 1) to quantify the effect of thoracolumbar vertebrae number variation of Dezhou donkeys on body size and carcass trait; 2) to study the distribution of single nucleotide variants (SNVs) in the LTBP2 gene of Dezhou donkeys; and 3) to explore whether these SNVs can be used as candidate sites to study the mechanism of Dezhou donkey muti-thoracolumbar vertebrae development. The TLN, body size, and carcass traits of 392 individuals from a Dezhou donkey breed were recorded. All animals were sequenced for LTBP2 using GBTS liquid chip and 16 SNVs were used for further analysis. We then analyzed the relationship between these SNVs with TLN, body size, and carcass traits. The results showed that: 1) c.5547 + 860 C > T, c.5251 + 281 A > C, c.3769 + 40 C > T, and c.2782 + 3975 A > G were complete genetic linkages and significantly associated with thoracic vertebrae number (TN) (p < 0.05) (wild-type homozygotes had more TN than heterozygotes); 2) c.1381 + 768 T > G and c.1381 + 763 G > T were significantly associated with lumber vertebrae number (LN) (p < 0.05); 3) c.1003 + 704 C > T, c.1003 + 651 C > T, c.1003 + 626 A > G, and c.812 + 22526 T > G were significantly associated with chest circumference (CHC), front carcass weight (CWF), after carcass weight (CWA), and carcass weight (CW) (p < 0.05) (wild-type homozygotes were larger than other genotypes in CHC, CWF, CWA, and CW); and 4) the effect of variation is not consistent in c.565 + 11921A > G, c.565 + 6840 A > G, c.565 + 3453 C > T, and c.494 + 5808 C > T. These results provide useful information that the polymorphism of LTBP2 is significantly associated with TLN, body size, and carcass traits in Dezhou donkeys, which can serve as a molecule marker to improve donkey production performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The serious complication of bone cement displacement is easy to occur when Kummell’s disease is treated with common bone cement filling method OBJECTIVE: To analyze the biomechanical properties of the novel bone cement screw system, percutaneous vertebroplasty and percutaneous vertebroplasty combined with percutaneous pediculoplasty in treatment of Kummell’s disease with three-dimensional finite element method. METHODS: The collected CT data in Kummell’s disease patients were imported into Mimics image processing software to read the images. A three-segment three-dimensional finite element model of T12, L1, and L2 vertebrae was established (L1 was the diseased segment), and a novel cement screw model was reconstructed with Creo software. The three-dimensional finite element model of Kummell’s disease was repaired and treated with five options: novel unilateral cement screw placement, novel bilateral cement screw placement, percutaneous vertebroplasty combined with unilateral percutaneous pediculoplasty, and percutaneous vertebroplasty combined with bilateral percutaneous pediculoplasty, and pure percutaneous vertebroplasty. Maximum equivalent stress of T12 inferior endplate, maximum Von-Mises of bone cement, relative displacement of bone cement, and stability of bone cement under flexion, extension, left flexion, right flexion, and rotation conditions were analyzed. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) There was little change in the stress distribution of the inferior endplate of T12 under different schemes, and the maximum Von-Mises of inferior endplate of T12 of percutaneous vertebroplasty combined with unilateral and bilateral percutaneous pediculoplasty group was larger under different working conditions. The maximum Von-Mises of inferior endplate of T12 of other groups was smaller. (2) The maximum Von-Mises of bone cement of percutaneous vertebroplasty group was obviously larger than that of the other four schemes, and its stress distribution was not uniform. (3) The bone cement displacement of percutaneous vertebroplasty group was the largest under most working conditions, and the relative displacement of the bone cement in the other schemes was different under different working conditions. The relative displacement of the bone cement in the novel unilateral and bilateral cement screw groups was small under flexion, extension and lateral flexion. Under the rotation, there was no significant difference in the relative displacement of the bone cement between the novel unilateral and bilateral cement screw group and the percutaneous vertebroplasty combined with unilateral and bilateral percutaneous pediculoplasty group. (4) The cement displacement load ratio of novel unilateral and bilateral bone cement screw group was higher than those of other schemes. (5) Results showed that for the treatment of Kummell’s disease, the use of a novel bone cement screw treatment will have a more stable structure, can effectively avoid bone cement displacement. However, this study requires clinical confirmation of its practicability in the treatment of Kummell’s disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC) that arises from the tonsil is a particularly rare head and neck carcinoma. This kind of neoplasm mainly originated from the bronchopulmonary area; however, there were reported cases of extrapulmonary areas. The prognosis is poor as the tumour is an aggressive tumour and have a high risk of metastasis. Case Report: We experienced a patient presented with painless right neck swelling and hard tonsillar hypertrophy for past six month. Computer tomography showed the tumour extended to the parapharyngeal space and metastasized to the thoracolumbar vertebras. The intraoral biopsy of the tonsil confirmed primary small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the tonsil. The clinical presentation, radiological imaging, histopathological investigations, and methods of treatment are discussed. Conclusions: Due to the rarity of this disease, there is no definitive treatment yet for this disease. The physicians must thoroughly understand the nature and characteristic of the disease to find the best treatment. The latest discoveries in chemotherapy drugs and radiotherapy may improve the treatment modalities in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Morphological diversity is often attributed as adaptations to distinct ecologies. Although biologists have long hypothesized that distinct ecologies drive the evolution of body shape, these relationships are rarely tested across macroevolutionary scales in mammals. Here, I tested hypotheses that locomotor, hunting, and dietary ecologies influenced body shape evolution in carnivorans, a morphologically and ecologically diverse clade of mammals. I found that adaptive models with ecological trait regimes were poor predictors of carnivoran body shape and the underlying morphological components that contribute to body shape variation. Instead, the best-supported model exhibited clade-based evolutionary shifts, indicating that the complexity and variation of body shape landscape cannot be effectively captured by a priori ecological regimes. However, ecological adaptations of body shapes cannot be ruled out, as aquatic and terrestrial carnivorans exhibited opposite allometric patterns of body shape that may be driven by different gravitational constraints associated with these different environments. Similar to body size, body shape is a prominent feature of vertebrate morphology that may transcend one-to-one mapping relationships between morphology and ecological traits, enabling species with distinct body shapes to exploit similar resources and exhibit similar ecologies. Together, these results demonstrate that the multidimensionality of both body shape morphology and ecology makes it difficult to disentangle the complex relationship among morphological evolution, ecological diversity, and phylogeny across macroevolutionary scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Precise and reliable segmentation of vertebral column is crucial for accurate computer aided diagnostic system (CADx). It assists the radiologists and doctors in identifying various pathologies in the vertebrae with better visualizations. Accurate segmentation of vertebral disks and bones from the medical images is a tough job and becomes more challenging when dealing with various deformities and pathologies. While remarkable success was achieved by deep convolutional neural networks (DCNNs) in medical image segmentation, it is still a difficult task for DCNNs to handle the medical image segmentation problems with various deformities and anatomical complexities. In this paper, we propose a novel and efficient framework to address the subject problem by integrating a parametric level set approach in deep convolutional neural networks. The proposed scheme utilizes the probability map of pre-trained deep network to initialize the level set and it refines the output iteratively under the action of various forces to fine-tune the training of deep network. Thus the learning of the network is improved and the network is able to accommodate high topological shape variations in the vertebrae. This proposed method was evaluated on two different datasets. The first one is 20 publically available 3D spine MRI dataset to perform disc segmentation and the second one is 173 computed tomography scans for thoracolumbar (thoracic and lumbar) vertebrae segmentation. The dice score was found to be 90.37 ± 0.9 percent for disks segmentation and 94.7 ± 1.1 with ASSD of 0.1 ± 0.04 mm for thoracolumbar vertebrae segmentation. The results reveal that our proposed method is robust over multiple segmentations and outperformed the recently published state of art methods.

The diversity of body shapes is one of the most prominent features of phenotypic variation in vertebrates. Biologists, however, still lack a full understanding of the underlying morphological components that contribute to its diversity, particularly in endothermic vertebrates such as mammals. In this study, hypotheses pertaining to the evolution of the cranial and axial components that contribute to the diversity of carnivoran body shapes were tested. Three trends were found in the evolution of carnivoran body shapes: (1) carnivorans exhibit diverse body shapes with intrafamilial variation predicted best by family clade age, (2) body shape is driven by strong allometric effects of body size where species become more elongate with decreasing size, and (3) the thoracic and lumbar regions and rib length contribute the most to body shape variation, albeit pathways differ between different families. These results reveal the morphological patterns that led to increased diversity in carnivoran body shapes and elucidate the similarities and dissimilarities that govern body shape diversity across vertebrates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been well-established that the number of vertebrae is associated with body size and meat productivity. In current study we utilized a digital radiography (DR) technology to detect the number of thoracolumbar vertebrae in live donkeys. For this purpose, we introduced for the first time a groundbreaking device designed by our team for assessing thoracolumbar vertebrae number traits in equids, employing a sample of 1,000 donkeys sourced from five distinct donkey farms. This assessment incorporates a range of crucial body metrics, including body height, length, and various other measurements. Subsequently, our study determined the number of thoracolumbar vertebrae in 112 donkeys, utilizing the DR system. These findings were further validated through post-mortem evaluations conducted by slaughtering the donkeys. Our findings demonstrated a remarkable resemblance between the thoracolumbar vertebrae numbers visualized through the DR system in live donkeys and those obtained via slaughter verification. In conclusion, this research underscores the accuracy and effectiveness of the DR system for the detection of thoracolumbar vertebrae in live donkeys, which might be helpful for assessing the body size and meat productivity. We also recommended the utilization of DR system for counting thoracolumbar vertebrae in other animals in live state and could be a useful addition to livestock business industry for the prediction of body size and meat productivity efficiency., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The reviewer NK declared a past co-authorship with the author MZ to the handling editor., (Copyright © 2024 Wang, Zahoor Khan, Liu, Wang, Shi, Ren, Zhan and Wang.)

BACKGROUND: During vertebroplasty for treatment of osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture, traditional pedicle puncture route easily punctures the medial wall of the pedicle and causes spinal cord injury. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical effect of percutaneous vertebroplasty by bone cement perfusion via using the unilateral transverse process-pedicle approach in the treatment of thoracolumbar osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture. METHODS: Thirty patients (42 vertebral bodies) with osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture who received treatment during November 2016 to March 2017 in the Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, China were included in this study. These patients consisted of 9 males and 21 females, aged 58-82 years. All of them underwent percutaneous vertebroplasty by bone cement perfusion via unilateral transverse process-pedicle approach. Bone cement leakage was recorded. Before treatment, 1 week after treatment and at the last follow-up, imaging was used to observe the recovery of vertebral height and changes of Cobb angle, to measure Visual Analogue Score, which was used to evaluate the pain, and Oswestry Disability Index score, which was used to evaluate the improvement of daily activity function. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of The Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: All 30 patients successfully completed the operation and were followed up for 6-9 months. Among the 42 vertebral bodies, bone cement leaked to the intervertebral space in 4 vertebral bodies and it leaked to the anterior edge of the vertebral body in 2 vertebral bodies. There was no leakage in the spinal canal, and the total leakage rate was 14%. No adverse clinical symptoms were observed. In 30 patients, Visual Analogue Scores and Oswestry Disability Index scores at 1 week after treatment and at the last follow-up were significantly lower than those before treatment (P < 0.05). In 30 patients, at 1 week after treatment and the last follow-up, the vertebral body height of the patients was significantly higher (P < 0.05), as well as the Cobb angle was significantly lower (P < 0.05), compared with before treatment (P < 0.05). The results suggest that percutaneous vertebroplasty by bone cement perfusion via unilateral transverse process-pedicle approach is a safe and effective method for the treatment of thoracolumbar osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An elongate body with reduced or absent limbs has evolved independently in many ectothermic vertebrate lineages. While much effort has been spent examining the morphological pathways to elongation in these clades, quantitative investigations into the evolution of elongation in endothermic clades are lacking. We quantified body shape in 61 musteloid mammals (red panda, skunks, raccoons, and weasels) using the head‐body elongation ratio. We also examined the morphological changes that may underlie the evolution toward more extreme body plans. We found that a mustelid clade comprised of the subfamilies Helictidinae, Guloninae, Ictonychinae, Mustelinae, and Lutrinae exhibited an evolutionary transition toward more elongate bodies. Furthermore, we discovered that elongation of the body is associated with the evolution of other key traits such as a reduction in body size and a reduction in forelimb length but not hindlimb length. This relationship between body elongation and forelimb length has not previously been quantitatively established for mammals but is consistent with trends exhibited by ectothermic vertebrates and suggests a common pattern of trait covariance associated with body shape evolution. This study provides the framework for documenting body shapes across a wider range of mammalian clades to better understand the morphological changes influencing shape disparity across all vertebrates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the effects of morphological changes such as vertebral wedge deformation and disc degeneration (collapse) on adult thoracolumbar/lumbar degenerative kyphosis(TL/LDK) deformity., Methods: A retrospective analysis of 32 patients with spinal TL/LDK deformity admitted from August 2015 to December 2020, including 8 males and 24 females, aged 48 to 75(60.3±12.4) years old. On the long-cassette standing upright lateral radiographs, the coronal Cobb angle, sagittal thoracic lumbar/lumbar kyphosis angle(KA) of spine were measured, and the height and wedge parameters of apex vertebral(AV) and two vertebrae(AV-1, AV-2, AV+1, AV+2) above and below AV and the intervertebrae and the intervertebral disc(AV-1D, AV-2D, AV+1D, AV+2D) were evaluated, involving anterior vertebral body height(AVH), posterior vertebral body height(PVH), vertebral wedge angle(VWA), ratio of vertebral wedging(RVW), anterior disc height(ADH), posterior disc height(PDH), disc wedge angle(DWA), ratio of disc wedging(RDW), and DWA/KA., Results: The average angle of kyphosis was (44.2±19.1)°. A significant decrease in anterior height of vertebral was observed compared to the posterior height of vertebral( P <0.005). There was no significant difference in anterior and posterior height of discs. The vertebral wedging ratio/contribution ratio:AV-2(14.98±10.95)%/(14.21±8.08)%, AV-1(21.08±12.39)%/(18.09±7.38)%, AV(26.94±11.94)%/(25.52±8.64)%, AV+1(24.19±8.42)%/(20.82±8.69)%, AV+2(20.56±7.80)%/(15.60±9.71)%, total contribution(94.23±22.25)%, the disc wedging ratio/contribution ratio:AV-2D(2.88±2.57)%/(5.27±4.11)%, AV-1D(1.98±1.41)%/(2.29±2.16)%, AV+1D(-5.54±3.75)%/(-0.57±0.46)%, AV+2D(-8.27±4.62)%/(-1.22±1.11)%, total contribution (5.77±4.79)%. And the contribution rate of AV was significantly higher than that of adjacent vertebral( P <0.05)., Conclusion: The vertebral body and intervertebral disc shape both have influence on thoracolumbar kyphosis. However, the contribution of vertebral morphometry to the angle of TL/LDK deformity is relatively more important than the disc. The contribution of the wedge change of the AV to the TL/LDK deformity is particularly significant.

Objective: To investigate the effect of different treatment methods on the vertebral stability of osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture (OVCF) by finite element analysis., Methods: Ten patients with thoracolumbar OVCF admitted between January 2020 and June 2021 were selected, 5 of whom underwent operation (operation group), 5 underwent conservative treatment (conservative treatment group). Another 5 healthy volunteers were selected as the control group. There was no significant difference in gender and age between groups ( P >0.05). The operation group and the conservative treatment group received CT examination of the fractured vertebral body and adjacent segments before and after treatments, while the control group received CT examination of T 12 -L 2 . By importing CT data into Mimics 10.01 software, the finite element model was constructed. After comparing the finite element model of control group with the previous relevant literature measurement results to verify the validity, the spinal structural stress and range of motion (ROM) in each group under different conditions were measured., Results: The three-dimensional finite element model was verified to be valid. There were significant differences in spinal structural stress after treatment between groups under different conditions ( P <0.05). Before treatment, the ROMs of operation group and conservative treatment group under difference conditions were significantly lower than those of control group ( P <0.05), and there was no difference between conservative treatment group and operation group ( P >0.05). After treatment, the ROMs of the control group and the operation group were significantly higher than those of the conservative treatment group ( P <0.05), and there was no significant difference between the operation group and the control group ( P >0.05)., Conclusion: For patients with OVCF, the minimally invasive operation can achieve better results. Compared with conservative treatment, it can reduce the effect on spinal stability, and can be as a preferred treatment method, which is helpful to improve the prognosis of patients.

The number of thoracolumbar vertebrae in Dezhou donkeys varies from 22 to 24 and is associated with body size and carcass traits. In mammals, the latent transforming growth factor beta binding protein 2 ( LTBP2 ) has been found to have some functions in the development of thoracolumbar vertebrae. The relationship between LTBP2 and TLN (the number of thoracolumbar vertebrae) of Dezhou donkeys is yet to be reported. The purposes of this study are as follows: 1) to quantify the effect of thoracolumbar vertebrae number variation of Dezhou donkeys on body size and carcass trait; 2) to study the distribution of single nucleotide variants (SNVs) in the LTBP2 gene of Dezhou donkeys; and 3) to explore whether these SNVs can be used as candidate sites to study the mechanism of Dezhou donkey muti-thoracolumbar vertebrae development. The TLN, body size, and carcass traits of 392 individuals from a Dezhou donkey breed were recorded. All animals were sequenced for LTBP2 using GBTS liquid chip and 16 SNVs were used for further analysis. We then analyzed the relationship between these SNVs with TLN, body size, and carcass traits. The results showed that: 1) c.5547 + 860 C > T, c.5251 + 281 A > C, c.3769 + 40 C > T, and c.2782 + 3975 A > G were complete genetic linkages and significantly associated with thoracic vertebrae number (TN) ( p < 0.05) (wild-type homozygotes had more TN than heterozygotes); 2) c.1381 + 768 T > G and c.1381 + 763 G > T were significantly associated with lumber vertebrae number (LN) ( p < 0.05); 3) c.1003 + 704 C > T, c.1003 + 651 C > T, c.1003 + 626 A > G, and c.812 + 22526 T > G were significantly associated with chest circumference (CHC), front carcass weight (CWF), after carcass weight (CWA), and carcass weight (CW) ( p < 0.05) (wild-type homozygotes were larger than other genotypes in CHC, CWF, CWA, and CW); and 4) the effect of variation is not consistent in c.565 + 11921 A > G, c.565 + 6840 A > G, c.565 + 3453 C > T, and c.494 + 5808 C > T. These results provide useful information that the polymorphism of LTBP2 is significantly associated with TLN, body size, and carcass traits in Dezhou donkeys, which can serve as a molecule marker to improve donkey production performance., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Liu, Wang, Shi, Wang, Ren, Huang and Wang.)

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to determine the entry point and the depth of a guide needle in a transpedicular procedure of the lower thoracic and lumbar spine on standard fluoroscopic views. Ten human cadaveric thoracolumbar spines (T9–L5) were anatomized into single vertebrae. The transpedicular puncturing needle was inserted and placed under the anterior cortex of the vertebrae along the center axis of the pedicle. The projection of the pedicle was divided into 12 sectors (“clock measurement”) on the standard posterior–anterior (PA) view. We found that the ratio of the needle depth to the width of the vertebrae on the standard lateral view varied from 71.53%±5.72% to 93.28%±3.72% (mean±standard deviation). The entry point was located at the 9 o’clock to 11 o’clock position on the left pedicle projection and at the 1 o’clock to 3 o’clock position on the right pedicle projection on the PA view. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

SUMMARY Segmental variations in vertebral body cancellous bone architecture throughout the thoracolumbar spine were examined using histomorphometry and microradiography, and compared to bone mass measured using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. In six human vertebral columns (T1 to L5) bone mineral content (BMC) and bone mineral density (BMD) of each vertebral body was determined in the lateral projection. Sagittal plane cancellous bone architecture was assessed from two-dimensional surface stained images and microradiographs of two 1 mm thick sections at each vertebral level. Computer-assisted image analysis was used to measure the total bone area (TBA), mean trabecular width (MTW) and trabecular number (TbN) from the stained images, and the skeletonized network length (SNL) from the radiographic images. Consistent segmental trends were observed for all structural parameters across the six columns examined. Higher TBA and TbN values were observed in the upper thoracic segments and decreased caudally. The MTW was relatively constant in the thoracic vertebrae before increasing in the lumbar spine. Pooled correlations between TBA and the bone density measurements were poor (BMC: r=0.17, BMD: r= 0.25), while the TBA and SNL were only moderately correlated ( r= 0.42). In conclusion, histomorphometric and radiological measurements appear to provide different information about cancellous bone structure. Bone structure is poorly correlated to integral measurements of bone mass. The consistent segmental variations in bone architecture appear to reflect a skeletal response to the relative extent of habitually applied loads in different regions of the spine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]