Studies of the haemopoietic microenvironment. II. Content of glycosaminoglycans in murine bone marrow and spleen under anaemic and polycythaemic conditions.

Different glycosaminoglycans are described to be involved in processes of cell proliferation and differentiation. To investigate a possible direct involvement of glycosaminoglycans within the haemopoietic organs in erythropoiesis, biochemical separation and quantification of splenic and bone marrow glycosaminoglycans in anaemic and polycythaemic mice were performed. Hyaluronic acid, chondroitin sulphate A, B and C were present in both organs under both conditions. Both in spleen and bone marrow of polycythaemic mice very low amounts of chondroitin sulphate A, B and C, and a higher amount of hyaluronic acid were found in comparison to normal mice. In anaemic mice only the amount of splenic chondroitin sulphate C was found to be lower than in normal mice. It is demonstrated that considerable changes in sulphated and unsulphated glycosaminoglycans occur during erythropoietic stimulation and suppression. The present findings do not indicate a causal relationship between sulphated glycosaminoglycan levels in the haemopoietic organs and the extend of erythropoietic maturation.