Yang Ick Hwan, Kim Su Hyang, Kim Yun Hee, Sun Hyun Jin, Kim Sung Jae, Lee Jin Woo
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine, 134 Shinchon-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 120-752, Korea.
Yonsei Med J. 2004 Oct 31;45(5):891-900. doi: 10.3349/ymj.2004.45.5.891.
Chondrogenesis involves the recruitment of mesenchymal cells to differentiate into chondroblasts, and also the cells must synthesize a cartilage-specific extracellular matrix. There were two representative culture systems that promoted the chondrogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells. These systems were adaptations of the "pellet" culture system, which was originally described as a method for preventing the phenotypic modulation of chondrocytes, and the "alginate bead" culture system, which was used to maintain encapsulated cells at their differentiated phenotype over time, and also it was used to maintain the cells' proteoglycan synthesis at a rate similar to that of primary chondrocytes. We performed test on the differences of phenotypic characterization with the two methods of differentiating human mesenchymal stem cells into chondrocytes. The typical gene for articular cartilage, collagen type II, was more strongly expressed in the "alginate bead" system than in the "pellet" culture system, in addition, specific gene for hypertrophic cartilage, collagen type X, was more rapidly expressed in the "pellet" system than in "alginate bead" culture system. Therefore, the "alginate bead" culture system is a more phenotypical, practical and appropriate system to differentiate human mesenchymal stem cells into articular chondrocytes than the "pellet" culture system.
软骨形成涉及募集间充质细胞分化为软骨细胞，并且细胞必须合成软骨特异性细胞外基质。有两种代表性的培养系统可促进人间充质干细胞的软骨分化。这些系统是对“微球”培养系统的改良，该系统最初被描述为一种防止软骨细胞表型调节的方法，以及“藻酸盐珠”培养系统，该系统用于使包封的细胞随时间维持其分化表型，并且还用于以与原代软骨细胞相似的速率维持细胞的蛋白聚糖合成。我们对将人间充质干细胞分化为软骨细胞的两种方法的表型特征差异进行了测试。关节软骨的典型基因，II型胶原蛋白，在“藻酸盐珠”系统中比在“微球”培养系统中表达更强，此外，肥大软骨的特异性基因，X型胶原蛋白，在“微球”系统中比在“藻酸盐珠”培养系统中表达更快。因此，与“微球”培养系统相比，“藻酸盐珠”培养系统是一种更具表型、更实用且更适合将人间充质干细胞分化为关节软骨细胞的系统。
