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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2013 Nov 25.
Published in final edited form as: J Orthop Res. 2012 Apr 19;30(11):10.1002/jor.22117. doi: 10.1002/jor.22117

Figure 1.

Figure 1

Rats subjected to long-term low-level lead exposure exhibit cartilage degeneration in the tibiofemoral articulation. Ad libitum treatment with 50 ppm Pb via lead acetate in the drinking water resulted in blood lead levels of 9µg/dL. These levels were achieved within 1 week of treatment and maintained for 18 months. Histological examination after Safranin O staining revealed degradation of the lamina splendens and changes in cell morphology in the lead treated group but not in unexposed controls.