Patent Publication Number: US-2017356830-A1

Title: Fixture for biological tissue and method for attaching same

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a fixture for biological tissue and a method for attaching the same. The present invention particularly relates to a fixture serving as a jig that allows a bone with biological tissue attached thereto to be set on a tensile testing machine for tensile test that is conducted for biological tissue connected to a bone, such as a ligament or a tendon, which tissue, after subjected to animal experimentation, is pulled by the tensile testing machine, and further relates to a method for attaching the fixture. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     The anterior cruciate ligament in the knee joint is tissue that links the thigh bone to the shinbone for stable knee joint motion. When the anterior cruciate ligament is damaged, anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction is performed in which a healthy autologous tendon extracted from part of the body of the patient is used to reconstruct the anterior cruciate ligament under the current status that no excellent artificial ligament is available. However, research and development are being conducted for a new artificial ligament which consists of living-body-originated tissue extracted from an animal, intended to allow reconstruction of a damaged anterior cruciate ligament without extraction of an autologous tendon from the patient. In the process of the research and development, dynamic characteristics of artificial ligaments of interest in the research and development have to be evaluated, and it is desirable to prepare a strip-shaped test piece from the artificial ligament before the reconstruction and conduct tensile test or the like for the test piece using a tensile testing machine (see Patent Literature 1, for example). 
     CITATION LIST 
     Patent Literature 
     Patent Literature 1: Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2013-165740 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     Technical Problem 
     Further, in the process of research and development of a new artificial ligament, after the artificial ligament is transplanted into biological tissue, it is also necessary to evaluate dynamic characteristics of the artificial ligament having undergone joint motion for a fixed period. For example, after the developed artificial ligament is transplanted into the knee joint of an animal, such as a sheep and a pig, it is necessary to force the animal to move for a predetermined period and then evaluate dynamic characteristics of the artificial ligament. Since the reconstructed artificial ligament is linked to the thigh bone and the shinbone with the artificial ligament twisted and further securely adheres to the bones, as in the case of the initial anterior cruciate ligament, it is difficult to take out only the artificial ligament from the knee joint of the animal after the artificial ligament is transplanted into the knee joint and then some period of time elapses. Therefore, to evaluate the dynamic characteristics of the artificial ligament after the reconstruction of the knee joint of an animal, it is inevitable that the animal is killed as a sacrifice, the knee joint is isolated as a whole, and the artificial ligament in the isolated knee joint is tested for the dynamic characteristic evaluation. The artificial ligament linked to the thigh bone and the shinbone is, however, twisted as described above, and when a tensile test is so conducted that the bone axis that is the center line of the thigh bone and the shinbone coincides with the tensile direction, the artificial ligament is pulled with the artificial ligament inclining with respect to the tensile direction or the artificial ligament twisted, resulting in inaccurate comparison in the dynamic characteristic evaluation between the artificial ligament before the reconstruction and the artificial ligament after the reconstruction. Therefore, in this process, the artificial ligament linked to the thigh bone and the shinbone needs to be fixed in the vertical direction, which coincides with the tensile direction, in a constant state, such as a state in which the twist and inclination are eliminated. A jig for fixing an artificial ligament in the manner described above is, however, not currently available. 
     The present invention has been made to solve the problem described above, and an object of the invention is to provide a biological tissue fixture that is used with a tensile testing machine that exerts tensile force to biological tissue attached to a bone and can adjust twist and inclination of the biological tissue so that the biological tissue and the bone can be integrally set on the tensile testing machine, and another object of the present invention is to provide a method for attaching the fixture. 
     Solution to Problem 
     To achieve the object described above, the present invention relates to a biological tissue fixture that is used when biological tissue connected to a bone is set on a tensile testing machine and fixes the bone with the biological tissue attached thereto, the fixture including a holder that holds the bone and a support that supports the holder. The holder is provided with an around-bone-axis angle adjusting mechanism that adjusts an angle of rotation of the bone around a bone axis of the bone held by the holder. The holder and the support are provided with a bone inclination angle adjusting mechanism that adjusts an inclination angle of the bone held by the holder. The support is provided with a lateral position adjusting mechanism that adjusts a lateral position of the holder and a longitudinal position adjusting mechanism that adjusts a longitudinal position of the holder. 
     A method for attaching the fixture according to the present invention is a fixture attaching method used when the biological tissue connected to first and second bones is set on the tensile testing machine, the method primarily including fixing the first bone with one fixture described above and the second bone with another fixture described above and attaching one of the fixtures to a fixed side of the tensile testing machine and attaching another of the fixtures to a load cell side of the tensile testing machine. 
     In the claims and the specification of the present invention, the “longitudinal direction” means the direction along the x axis shown in  FIG. 1 , and the “lateral direction” means the direction along the y axis shown in  FIG. 1  and perpendicular to the x axis in a horizontal plane. 
     Advantageous Effects of Invention 
     According to the present invention, since the posture of a held bone with biological tissue attached thereto can be adjusted in rotational directions around two axes, and the position of the held bone can be adjusted in translational directions along two axes. Therefore, in a case where a tensile testing machine exerts tensile force to the biological tissue attached to the bone, twist and inclination of the biological tissue can be adjusted, and the biological tissue and the bone can be integrally set on the tensile testing machine. That is, the around-bone-axis angle adjusting mechanism can eliminate twist of the biological tissue or adjust the amount of twist of the biological tissue to a prespecified value. Further, adjustment performed by the lateral position adjusting mechanism, the longitudinal position adjusting mechanism, and the bone inclination angle adjusting mechanism allows the biological tissue to be disposed in a posture that agrees with the direction in which the biological tissue is pulled irrespective of the difference in posture of the biological tissue relative to the bone. Moreover, adjustment performed by the bone inclination angle adjusting mechanism allows an inclination angle of the bone with the biological tissue attached thereto to be in a desired state and attached to the tensile testing machine. 
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a schematic perspective view showing the state in which a fixture for biological tissue according to an embodiment of the present invention is attached to a tensile testing machine that is not shown. 
       FIG. 2  is a schematic side view of the state shown in  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 3  is a schematic perspective view of the fixture. 
       FIG. 4  is a schematic side view of the fixture. 
       FIG. 5(A)  is a schematic perspective view of the fixture with the posture of a holder changed from the posture in  FIG. 3  and viewed in a direction different from the viewing direction in  FIG. 3 , and  FIG. 5(B)  is a schematic perspective view of the fixture with the posture of the holder changed from, the postures in  FIGS. 3 and 4  and viewed in the same direction as the viewing direction in  FIG. 3 . 
       FIG. 6(A)  is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of an accommodating body, and  FIG. 6(B)  is a schematic bottom view of the accommodating body. 
       FIG. 7  is a schematic perspective view of a restricting block. 
       FIG. 8(A)  is a schematic front view of an angle adjusting plate, and  FIG. 8(B)  is a schematic cross-sectional view of the angle adjusting plate taken in the direction along the line A-A in  FIG. 8(A) . 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 
       FIG. 1  is a schematic perspective view showing the state in which a fixture for biological tissue according to the present embodiment is attached to a tensile testing machine that is not shown, and  FIG. 2  is a schematic side view of the state shown in  FIG. 1 .  FIG. 3  is a schematic perspective view of the fixture, and  FIG. 4  is a schematic side view of the fixture. In these figures, the fixture  10  is used in a situation in which an artificial ligament A, which serves as biological tissue, is transplanted as the anterior cruciate ligament in the knee joint of an animal and the tensile testing machine exerts, after a predetermined period elapses, tensile force to the artificial ligament A in a knee joint portion taken out from the animal, and the fixture  10  is a jig for attaching the knee joint as a whole to the tensile testing machine. The fixture  10  according to the present embodiment is not necessarily made of a specific material and is made of a metal, such as stainless steel. 
     Two separate fixtures  10  having substantially the same structure are used when attached to the tensile testing machine. The two fixtures  10  fix and hold a thigh bone B as a first bone and a shinbone B as a second bone, respectively, and are attached to the tensile testing machine, as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . Since the fixtures  10 , which fix the thigh bone B and the shinbone B, have substantially the same structure, the thigh bone B and the shinbone B are collectively referred to as a “bone B” in the following description. Further, in the following sections, only the lower fixture  10  in  FIGS. 1 and 2  will be described in terms of the configuration, effect, and other factors, and as for the upper fixture  10  in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the configured portions identical or equivalent to those of the lower fixture  10  in  FIGS. 1 and 2  have the same reference characters and will not described or will be described in a simplified manner. 
     The fixture  10  includes a holder  11 , which holds the bone B with the artificial ligament A attached thereto, and a support  12 , which supports the holder  11 . 
     The holder  11  includes an accommodating body  14 , which accommodates the side facing a base portion of the bone B, the side opposite the artificial ligament A, and a restricting block  15 , which surrounds and holds the accommodating body  14 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 3 to 6 , the accommodating body  14  is formed of a cylindrical member  17 , which has an internal space S, into which the bone B is inserted, and a flange member  18 , which is integrally continuous with the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical member  17  (see  FIGS. 5(A)  and  6 ). 
     The cylindrical member  17  has one open end, which is the upper end in  FIG. 6(A) , and a closed other end, which is the lower end in  FIG. 6(A)  and forms a bottom, and can be divided into two halves along a joining edge C, which extends in the upward/downward direction in  FIG. 6(A) . A plurality of holes  19 , which pass through the cylindrical member  17  from the inner surface to the outer surface thereof, are formed in the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical member  17 . 
     The flange member  18  is provided around the, cylindrical member  17  and in a position of the cylindrical member  17  shifted downward in  FIG. 6(A)  and so provided as to be divided into two halves along the same joining edge C of the cylindrical member  17 , as shown in  FIG. 6(B) . The accommodating body  14  as a whole can therefore be divided into two halves. Further, the flange member  18  has elongated holes  21  extending in the circumferential direction, which pass through the flange member  18  from the front surface to the rear surface thereof, at four locations at equal intervals along the circumferential direction. 
     The accommodating body  14  is used as follows: The base-side portion of the bone B is inserted into the internal space S through an open portion of the cylindrical member  17 , the portion located at the upper end thereof in  FIG. 6(A) ; the gap between the bone B and the cylindrical member  17  is then filled with a filler, such as an epoxy resin, so that the bone B is immobile in the internal space S; and screws that are not shown are inserted into the holes  19  to fix the bone B in a desired posture to the accommodating body  14 . At this point, the bone B is so fixed that the bone axis thereof, which is the center axis of the bone B, roughly coincides with the center axis of the cylindrical Member  17 . After a test, conducted by a tensile testing machine is completed, the screws are detached, the accommodating body  14  is divided, the epoxy resin is removed, and the bone B is detached from the accommodating body  14 . 
     The restricting block  15  includes a main body  23 , which has a box-like block shape, and protruding members  24 , which are fixed to the main body  23  and each have a roughly columnar shape, as shown in  FIG. 7 . 
     The main body  23  has a through hole  26 , through which the cylindrical member  17  is inserted (see  FIG. 6  and other figures), a top surface  27  and a bottom surface  28 , which form the opposite-end-side surfaces in the direction in which the through hole  26  extends, side surfaces  29 ,  29 , which are continuous with the top surface  27  and the bottom surface  28  and to which the protruding members  24  are fixed, first positioning holes  31 , which pass through the main body  23  between the top surface  27  and the bottom surface  28 , and second positioning holes  32 , which pass through the main body  23  between the side surfaces  29 ,  29 . 
     The through hole  26  is a cylindrical hole that passes through the main body  23  between central portions of the top surface  27  and the bottom surface  28 , has an inner diameter that is approximately equal to or slightly greater than the outer diameter of the cylindrical member  17 , and is shorter than the cylindrical member  17 . 
     When the cylindrical member  17  is inserted into the through hole  26  and attached to the main body  23 , the flange member  18  comes into contact with the bottom surface  28 , as shown in  FIG. 5(A) , and the open-end side of the cylindrical member  17 , the side opposite the flange member  18 , is so disposed as to protrude beyond the top surface  27 , as shown in  FIG. 5(B)  and other figures. 
     The first positioning holes  31  are formed in the area outside the through hole  26  and at four locations at equal intervals along the circumferential direction, as shown in  FIG. 7 . When the flange member  18  is attached to the main body  23 , the first positioning holes  31  each communicate with part of the corresponding elongated hole  21  of the flange member  18  (see  FIG. 6(B)  and other figures). The cylindrical member  17  inserted through the through hole  26  of the main body  23  is rotatable around the center axis of the cylindrical member  17  relative to the main body  23 . The elongated holes  21 , which communicate with the first positioning holes  31 , are positioned while the cylindrical member  17  is rotated, and bolts T (see  FIG. 5(A) ) are inserted through the positioned elongated holes  21  and fastened with nuts N (see  FIG. 5(B) ), whereby the cylindrical member  17  is so fixed to the main body  23  as not to be rotatable. Therefore, rotating the cylindrical member  17  relative to the main body  23  allows the bone B accommodated in the cylindrical member  17  to be adjusted in terms of the angle of rotation around the bone axis of the bone B, and the cylindrical member  17  is fixed at a desired angle of rotation to the main body  23  with the bolts T and the nuts N in such a way that the cylindrical member  17  is not rotatable relative to the main body  23 . The accommodating body  14  and the restricting block  15  thus form an around-bone-axis angle adjusting mechanism that adjusts the angle of rotation of the bone B around the bone axis thereof. 
     The second positioning holes  32  are formed at four locations on the side facing the outer edge of the side surfaces  29  and in positions where the second positioning holes  32  do not interfere with the through hole  26  and the first positioning holes  31 , as shown in  FIG. 7 . 
     The protruding members  24  are so provided as to protrude from central portions of the side surfaces  29 ,  29 , the portions inside the second positioning holes  32 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the support  12  includes a pair of angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34 , to which the holder  11  is so attached that the angle of rotation of the holder  11  is variable, a lateral direction adjusting plate  35 , which supports the angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34  in a lateral movable manner along the y axis, a longitudinal direction adjusting plate  36 , which supports the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  in a longitudinally movable manner along the x axis, and a chuck attaching tool  37 , which is fixed to a surface of the longitudinal direction adjusting plate  36 , the surface located on the lower side in  FIG. 3 , and forms a portion attached to a chuck of the tensile testing machine. 
     The angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34 , each of which has a roughly T-letter-like shape in a side view, are so disposed as to face each other and supportably sandwich the holder  11  and are each formed of a primary section  39 , with which the restricting block  15  is in contact, and a bottom section  40 , which is continuous with the one side of the primary section  33 , the lower side in  FIG. 3 , and is wider than the primary section  39 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 8 , a circular recess  42  and elongated holes  43 ,  43  are formed in the primary section  39 ; the; corresponding protruding member  24  (see  FIG. 7 ) of the restricting block  15  is rotatably fit into the circular recess  42 , and the elongated holes  43 ,  43  are formed at two locations around the recess  42  and extend in the circumferential direction of a circle concentric with the recess  42 .  FIG. 8  (A) shows the angle adjusting plate  34  located on the right in  FIG. 3  and viewed from the side facing the inner surface thereof. 
     The recess  42  is so formed that the inner surface thereof facing the other angle adjusting plate  34  is open and so configured that when the protruding members  24 ,  24  are fit into the recesses  42 ,  42 , the restricting block  15  is placed across the space between the angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34 . 
     The elongated holes  43  are so formed as to pass through the primary section  39  and formed in positions where part of the elongated holes  43  communicate with the second positioning holes  32  (see  FIG. 7 ) of the restricting block  15  when the protruding members  24  fit into the recesses  42  are rotated. The elongated holes  43 ,  43  formed in the angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34  are formed in positions facing each other. 
     Achieve now the state in which the restricting block  15  to which the accommodating body  14  is attached is disposed between the pair of angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34 , the protruding members  24 ,  24  are fit into the recesses  42 ,  42 , the restricting block  15  is rotated with the protruding members  24 ,  24  serving as pivotal points, and a desired angle of rotation of the restricting block  15  is achieved. The bolts T are then inserted through the elongated holes  43 ,  43  from the exterior of one of the angle adjusting plates  34  to a point where the front ends of the bolts T protrude through the elongated holes  43 ,  43  of the other angle adjusting plate  34  on the opposite side, and the front ends of the bolts T are fastened with nuts N, whereby the holder  11  is so attached to and between the angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34  as not to be rotatable. The restricting block  15  can therefore be fixed to the angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34  after the restricting block  15  is rotated around the y axis and positioned, and the holder  11  can be attached to the angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34  in a variety of postures in which the angle of rotation of the holder  11  around the y axis has different values, as shown in  FIGS. 3 and 5 . The restricting block  15  and the angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34  thus form a bone inclination angle adjusting mechanism that adjusts the inclination angle of the bone B held by the holder  11 . 
     A cutout  45  and third positioning holes  47 ,  47  are formed in the bottom section  40 ; the cutout  45  is open downward at the center on one side of the bottom section  40 , the lower end side in  FIG. 8(A) , and third positioning holes  47 ,  47  are formed in outwardly sticking out portions of the primary section  39 , right and left side portions thereof in  FIG. 8(A) , and pass through the portions in the upward/downward direction in  FIG. 8(A) . 
     As shown in  FIG. 3 , the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  includes a base  49 , which has a rectangular shape in a plan view, and a guide  50 , which is located at the center of the base  49 , protrudes from the upper surface of the base  49 , and extends in the lengthwise direction thereof and with which the cutouts  45  of the angle adjusting plates  34  engage. 
     Elongated holes  51 ,  51  and fourth positioning holes  53  are formed in the base  4   9 ; the elongated holes  51 ,  51  are positioned on opposite sides in the widthwise direction of the base  49 , extend in the lengthwise direction thereof, and pass through the base  49  in the upward/downward direction in  FIG. 3 , and the fourth positioning holes  53  pass through the base  49  at four locations close to the corners thereof. 
     The elongated holes  51 ,  51  are formed in positions where part of the elongated holes  51 ,  51  communicate with the third positioning holes  47 ,  47  in a state in which the cutouts  45  are fit to the guide  50  and the angle adjusting plates  34  are so disposed as to stand on the base  43 . 
     Achieve now a state in which the pair of angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34  are so disposed as to stand on the base  49 , and the angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34  are moved in the lateral direction (y-axis direction) along the guide  50  and reach a desired lateral position. Bolts T are then inserted through the third positioning holes  47 ,  47  of the angle adjusting plates  34  to a point where the bolts T reach the elongated holes  51  of the base  49 , and nuts N are inserted into the elongated holes  51  from the rear side of the base  49  to fasten the bolts T, whereby the angle adjusting plates  34  are so attached to the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  as not to be movable in the lateral direction. The holder  11  fixed to the angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34  can therefore be fixed to the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  after the position of the holder  11  in the lateral direction is adjusted. The angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34  and the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  thus form a lateral position adjusting mechanism that adjusts the lateral position of the holder  11  that holds the bone B. 
     The longitudinal direction adjusting plate  36  includes a base  55 , which has a rectangular shape in a plan view, and guides  56 ,  56 , which protrude upward in  FIG. 3  from edges of the base  55  on opposite sides in the widthwise direction thereof. 
     Elongated holes  58 ,  58  are formed in the base  55  and in the vicinity of the inner sides of the guide  56 ,  56 , extend in the lengthwise direction thereof along the guides  56 ,  56 , and pass through the base  55  in the upward/downward direction in  FIG. 3 . 
     The guides  56 ,  56  are so disposed as to separate from each other by a distance approximately equal to or slightly wider than the lengthwise width of the base  49  of the lateral direction adjusting plate  35 , and the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  is placed on an upper surface portion between the guides  56 ,  56 . 
     The elongated holes  58 ,  58  are formed in positions where part of the elongated holes  58 ,  58  communicate with the fourth positioning holes  53 ,  53  of the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  with the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  placed on the upper surface of the longitudinal direction adjusting plate  36 . 
     Achieve now a state in which the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  placed on the longitudinal direction adjusting plate  36  is moved in the longitudinal direction (x-axis direction) along the guides  56 ,  56  and reaches a desired longitudinal position. Bolts T are then inserted through the elongated holes  58 ,  58  from the rear side of the base  55  to a point where the bolts T reach the fourth positioning holes  53  of the lateral direction adjusting plate  35 , and nuts N are inserted into the fourth positioning holes  53  to fasten front end portions of the bolts T, whereby the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  is so attached to the longitudinal direction adjusting plate  36  as not to be movable in the longitudinal direction. The lateral direction adjusting plate  35 , which supports the angle adjusting plates  34 ,  34 , to which the holder  11  is attached, can therefore be fixed to the longitudinal direction adjusting plate  36  after the longitudinal position of the lateral direction adjusting plate  35  is adjusted. The lateral direction adjusting plate  35  and the longitudinal direction adjusting plate  36  thus form a longitudinal position adjusting mechanism that adjusts the longitudinal position of the holder  11  that holds the bone B. 
     The chuck attaching tool  37  is fixed to the rear side of the base  55 , the side opposite the direction in which the guides  56  protrude. 
     How to set the fixtures  10  in the tensile testing machine will next be described. 
     The artificial ligament A is transplanted in the knee joint of an animal, and the animal is forced to move for a predetermined period. After the animal is killed as a sacrifice, the knee joint, which is a target of an experiment, is isolated as a whole. With the artificial ligament A located between the thigh bone B and the shinbone B and linked thereto, the thigh bone B and the shinbone B are held by the two fixtures  10 , and the chuck attaching tools  37 ,  37  are used to attach one of the fixtures  10  to the fixed side of the tensile testing machine and attach the other fixture  10  to the load cell side of the tensile testing machine. 
     To conduct a test for the stability of the isolated knee joint, the bone inclination angle adjusting mechanism is used to change the inclination angle of the thigh bone B and the shinbone B and adjust the bending angle of the knee joint, which is the angle between the thigh bone B and the shinbone B. With the bending angle changed several times, the tensile testing machine exerts several loads to the artificial ligament A, and the amounts of movement of the shinbone B relative to the thigh bone B are measured. 
     When the artificial ligament A in the isolated knee joint is pulled in a tensile test, to achieve a fixed posture of the artificial ligament A, which is a target of the test, the positions and postures of the thigh bone B and the shinbone B are adjusted as follows when the thigh bone B and the shinbone B are fixed by the fixtures  10 : That is, the angle of rotation of the bone B around the bone axis thereof is so adjusted by the angle adjusting mechanism that a thigh bone B and a shinbone B are held by the holders  11 ,  11  with twist of the artificial ligament A eliminated or the amount of twist of the artificial ligament A fixed. Further, the thigh bone and the shinbone B are so held by the holders  11 ,  11  that adjustment of the horizontal position of the holders  11  performed by lateral position adjusting mechanism and the longitudinal position adjusting mechanism and adjustment of the inclination angles of the thigh bone B and the shinbone B performed by the bone inclination angle adjusting mechanism allow the artificial ligament A to be disposed in the vertical direction along the tensile direction of the tensile testing machine (Z-axis direction in  FIG. 1 ). 
     Therefore, according to the embodiment described above, the bone B can be held by the fixtures  10  with two degrees of rotation freedom and two degrees of translation freedom. In addition to the degrees of freedom described above, another degree of freedom in the tensile direction of the tensile testing machine advantageously allows the thigh bone B and the shinbone B to be held with five degrees of freedom, which are equivalent to motion of the knee joint formed of the thigh bone B and the shinbone B. 
     The fixture  10  in the present invention is not necessarily used to hold the knee joint as in the embodiment described above and is capable of holding a bone in another site with another ligament, tendon, or any other biological tissue attached to the bone, and the bone with the biological tissue attached thereto can be attached to the tensile testing machine. 
     In addition to the above, the configuration of each portion of the fixture in the present invention is not limited to the illustrated exemplary configuration and can be changed in a variety of manners to the extent, that substantially the same effect is provided. 
     INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY 
     The fixture according to the present invention can be used as a jig for a test that holds a bone with a ligaments, tendon, or any other biological tissue attached thereto and allows a tensile test of the biological tissue maintained in a desired posture. 
     REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 
     
         
           10  Fixture 
           11  Holder 
           12  Support 
           14  Accommodating body (around-bone-axis angle adjusting mechanism) 
           15  Restricting block (around-bone-axis angle adjusting mechanism, bone inclination angle adjusting mechanism) 
           34  Angle adjusting plate (bone inclination angle adjusting mechanism, lateral position adjusting mechanism) 
           35  Lateral direction adjusting plate (lateral position adjusting mechanism, longitudinal position adjusting mechanism) 
           36  Longitudinal direction adjusting plate (longitudinal position adjusting mechanism)