Monsonego E, Halevy O, Gertler A, Hurwitz S, Pines M
Institute of Animal Science, Volcani Center, Bet Dagan, Israel.
Mol Cell Endocrinol. 1995 Oct 30;114(1-2):35-42. doi: 10.1016/0303-7207(95)03639-o.
The effect of chicken growth hormone (cGH) on the proliferation and differentiation of avian growth-plate chondrocyte was evaluated in culture. In culture, addition of ascorbic acid to the culture media caused cell differentiation. Treatment of proliferating chondrocytes with cGH caused a time-dependent increase in collagen type II gene expression together with a decrease in the appearance of osteopontin (OPN) in the medium. In addition, the ascorbic acid-dependent increase in alkaline phosphatase (AP) activity was inhibited by cGH. IGF-I, on the other hand, caused an increase in AP activity in the ascorbic acid-treated chondrocytes. In the presence of ascorbic acid, cGH did not affect collagen type II gene expression or the appearance of OPN in the medium. Proliferation of avian growth-plate chondrocytes, in contrast to mammalian chondrocytes, was not stimulated by GH alone, although the presence of cGH was essential for chondrocyte survival in long-term culture. cGH in combination with epidermal growth factor (EGF) stimulated cell proliferation. These results suggest that GH inhibits differentiation in avian growth-plate chondrocytes, thereby sustaining their proliferative state and maintaining their sensitivity to growth factors such as EGF.
