Corticosteroid-induced changes in glucose metabolism of chondrocytes.

Immature mice were treated for up to 12 weeks with daily doses of triamcinolone diacetate. Using quantitative histochemical methods, the proximal epiphyseal plate of the humerus was studied at regular intervals. By the tenth injection significant decrease was noted in the acid glycosaminoglycans content (25%) and in the neutral mucopolysaccharides (30%). Concomitantly, a marked increase was noted in the intracellular depots of glycogen (70%). It is suggested that the hormone's antiglycolytic effect in cartilage caused the glucose metabolic pathway to divert in the direction of glycogen synthesis, and thereby interfered with the normal synthetic pathway of the chondrocytes. The hormone's primary effect on the cells' hexose metabolism could be responsible, at least in part, for its inhibitory influence on bone growth.