The Nutritional Pathways of Articular Cartilage

An autoradiographic study of the nutrition of articular cartilage in rabbits using intravenous 35S described. In immature rabbits (open epiphyses) the isotope appeared to enter the cartilage from both the synovial fluid and the subchondral bone, while in the mature animals (closed epiphyses) the isotope appeared to enter articular cartilage only from the synovial fluid. The experiment provides additional evidence that the route of nutrients for the articular cartilage is affected by skeletal maturity.