Evidence mapPaperPMID 41568907Full record

ArticleJournal of cellular and molecular medicine2026

Transcriptomic and Functional Comparison of Cells Isolated From Healthy and Degenerated Ovine Intervertebral Discs.

Paul Humbert, Lucie Danet, Emmaëlle Carrot, Floriane Etienne, Boris Halgand, Frédéric Blanchard, Claire Vinatier, Jérôme Guicheux, Marion Fusellier, Catherine Le Visage and 1 more

Abstract readComparative Study
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of cellular and molecular medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Paul HumbertNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.
Lucie DanetNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.
Emmaëlle CarrotNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.
Floriane EtienneNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.
Boris HalgandNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.
Frédéric BlanchardNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.
Claire VinatierNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.
Jérôme GuicheuxNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.
Marion FusellierNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.
Catherine Le VisageNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1816-1649
Romain GuihoNantes Université, Oniris, CHU Nantes, INSERM, Regenerative Medicine and Skeleton, RMeS, UMR 1229, Nantes, France.

Funding

Agence Nationale de la Recherche ANR-19-CE18-0020-01Conseil Régional des Pays de la LoireFondation pour la Recherche Médicale DISCAFFHorizon 2020 Framework Programme iPSpine 825925Ministère de l'Enseignement Supérieur et de la Recherche ScientifiqueSociété Française de Rhumatologie
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) is a leading cause of chronic low back pain, yet its cellular and molecular mechanisms remain incompletely understood. Sheep represent a valuable in vivo and ex vivo model for IVDD due to their anatomical and biomechanical similarities with humans and the possibility to access disc samples at early stages of degeneration. In vitro, isolated annulus fibrosus (AF) and nucleus pulposus (NP) cells may provide insights into age-associated degenerative processes; this work investigates how well they capture senescence and metabolic alterations observed in vivo. Transcriptomic profiling of AF and NP cells from healthy young lambs and mildly degenerated aged sheep revealed distinct age- and tissue-specific signatures, with upregulation of inflammatory mediators, ECM-remodelling enzymes, and senescence-associated genes in aged cells. Cross-species deconvolution using a human single-cell RNA-sequencing reference confirmed conserved transcriptional modules between aged sheep and human degenerated discs, underscoring the model's translational relevance. However, functional assays demonstrated comparable responses of young and aged cells under basal conditions and after exposure to pro-degenerative stressors (IL-1β, senescence induction). Altogether, these findings validate sheep cells as a suitable in vitro model for studying disc degeneration mechanisms and for preclinical testing, although aged donors offer no clear additional functional benefits.

Indexed as

Intervertebral DiscIntervertebral Disc DegenerationTranscriptomeAgingAnimalsAnnulus FibrosusCellular SenescenceGene Expression ProfilingGene Expression RegulationHumansNucleus PulposusSheepagingenergy metabolismintervertebral disc degenerationin vitro modelovine spontaneous IVDDsheep modelspinetranscriptomic analysis

Identifiers

PMID41568907
PMCPMC12825213

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.