Human cadaveric spine dissection: A protocol for harvesting lumbar intervertebral discs from body donors

In spine research, human degenerative discs are commonly procured from patients undergoing spinal surgery; however, the acquisition of healthy discs as age-matched controls remains highly restricted. This study establishes a protocol for dissecting the spine of body donors, aiming to harvest intact lumbar intervertebral discs (IVDs). A one-year prospective cadaveric spine dissection on through the human body donation programme at a public institution. Thirteen body donors with no history of spinal diseases were identified. Consent of body donors was obtained from the family members. Following thawing deep-frozen cadavers, the dissection was performed via an anterior approach through a standard midline laparotomy to expose the retroperitoneal space, allowing access to the anterior aspect of the lumbar spine. The ligamentous and musculature structures were dissected out to expose the IVD tissues, indicated by ivory cartilaginous structure between the vertebrae. Pedicles of the vertebrae at L1-L5 were cut bilaterally, followed by osteotomy of the vertebral bodies, enabling the extraction of the discs with endplates intact from the spine. Post-mortem, histology of the harvested IVDs revealed mild histological changes in the endplate, AF lamellae, annular-nuclear demarcation, NP structure, with mean histological scores ranged from zero to five, corresponding to Thompson grades 1-2. This protocol demonstrates high efficiency in harvesting intact IVD tissues, highlighting its potential for obtaining age-matched control of aging IVDs in degenerative disc research.