Tissue-Engineered Grafts for Bone and Meniscus: Regeneration and Their Assessment Using MRI

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a noninvasive imaging modality with potential to visualize tissue injury, repair, replacement, and regeneration. In this chapter, we describe some of the technical advances of MRI used in tissue regeneration, with bone and meniscus as model systems. Development in MRI technologies has poised to improve imaging quality of hard and soft tissues, even for the information about macromolecules such as collagen and proteoglycans. Quantitative MRI is being developed with improved modalities for planning and outcomes of preclinical and clinical studies. The application of magnetic resonance (MR) images in the 3D modeling of bone and meniscus and relative prototype manufacturing is another important section of this chapter. The image data files of MRI can be extracted and used for computerized 3D anatomical modeling and prototyping. Tissue engineering has achieved prospective progress in both bone and meniscus regenerations. MRI as an imaging modality may enable preclinical evaluation; anatomical and medical modeling for surgical planning, preoperative planning and intraoperative planning; and postoperative tracking and evaluation.