Animal model of cervical spondylosis and its internal molecular mechanism

Qian Jiaming; Wang Xiaole; Fang Ting; Zhou Maosheng; Liu Fushui

doi:10.12307/2025.189

Abstract：BACKGROUND:There are many problems to completely transform clinical diseases into animal models,but the ideal animal model is the premise of the mechanism research of cervical spondylosis,and it is very important to select the appropriate animal model of cervical spondylosis. OBJECTIVE:To analyze the species,sex,age,type of cervical spondylosis model and its internal molecular mechanism of animal models of cervical spondylosis in detail so as to explore how to select suitable animal models for experimental research of cervical spondylosis. METHODS:PubMed,Medline,Embase,Web of Science,WanFang,VIP,and CNKI databases were searched with Chinese and English search terms"cervical spondylosis,cervical spondylotic myelopathy,cervical spondylotic radiculopathy,cervical spondylosis of vertebral artery type,neck type cervical spondylosis,unbalanced dynamic and static forces,joint injury,neck pain,animal model."According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria,the literature was screened,and finally 61 articles were included for review and analysis. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Rats are the most commonly used animals,and males seem to be more popular.It is recommended to use young adult animals.According to the characteristics of molding,cervical spondylosis models were divided into cervical spondylotic myelopath,cervical spondylotic radiculopathy,neck type cervical spondylosis,and other type cervical spondylosis.The advantages and disadvantages of various modeling methods were evaluated.Based on the studies of existing animal models,the molecular mechanism of cervical spondylosis was summarized.Therapeutic signals mediate nuclear factor-κB,phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase/protein kinase B,mitogen-activated protein kinase,and other pathways to regulate the biological processes of inflammation,apoptosis and autophagy of spinal cord,nerve root,intervertebral disc,muscle and other tissues,and ultimately delay the progression of cervical spondylosis.The quality of some studies is poor,and the clinical compatibility is not high.In the future,it is necessary to further standardize the animal model of cervical spondylosis,formulate relevant guidelines,improve the credibility of the research results,and lay a solid foundation for further human clinical trials.