Selective emergence of differentiated chondrocytes during serum-free culture of cells derived from fetal rat calvaria.

Cells dispersed from the chondrocranial portions of fetal rat calvaria proliferated and performed specialized functions during primary culture in a chemically defined medium. Mature cultures were typified by multilayered clusters of redifferentiating cartilage cells. Flattened cells that lacked distinguishing features occupied areas between the clusters. Alkaline phosphate-enriched, ultrastructurally typical chondrocytes within the clusters were encased in a dense extracellular matrix that stained prominently for chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans. This matrix contained fibrils measuring 19 nm in diameter, which were associated with proteoglycan granules that preferentially bound ruthenium red. A progressive increase in the number of cells indicated the proliferation of certain elements in the primary culture. The cells in primary culture were biochemically as well as morphologically heterogeneous since they were found to synthesize type I and type II collagens. Homogeneous populations of redifferentiated chondrocytes were recovered as floating cells and were shown to express the chondrocyte phenotype in secondary culture. Subcultured cells synthesized type II collagen and its precursors almost exclusively and incorporated 35SO4 into proteoglycan monomer and aggregates to a greater degree than the cells in primary culture. The pattern of proteoglycan monomer and aggregate labeling resembled that of intact cartilage segments and bovine articular chondrocytes. Skin fibroblasts harvested from the same rat fetuses failed to proliferate when maintained under identical conditions. Hence, exogenous hormones, growth factors, and protein are not required for chondrocyte growth and maturation.

Stimulation of DNA and collagen synthesis by autologous growth factor in cultured fetal rat calvaria.

Conditioned medium derived from organ or cell cultures prepared from 19- to 21-day fetal rat calvaria stimulated the incorporation of [3H]proline collagen and of [3H]thymidine into DNA in organ cultures of the same tissue. Addition of cortisol enhanced the effect on collagen but not on DNA synthesis. These effects appeared to be due to a nondialyzable and heat-stable growth factor.

Bone cells: a serum-free medium supports proliferation in primary culture.

Bone-cells isolated from embryonic rat calvaria increase in number two-to threefold when cultured at high, but not at low, population densities in a serum-free medium that contains albumin. Cultured cells respond to parathyroid hormone and exhibit a marked rise in alkaline phosphatase activity during proliferation, which suggests the progressive differentiation or preferential growth of osteoblast-like cells.

Alpha-aminoisobutyric acid transport in human leukemic lymphocytes: in vitro characteristics and inhibition by cortisol and cycloheximide.

We have studied the transport of alpha-aminoisobutyric acid (AIB)-3-(14)C and its response to cortisol and cycloheximide in vitro in blood lymphocytes from untreated patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. The accumulation of AIB-3-(14)C increased in a linear fashion for 60 min, and reached an apparent steady state in 120 min. The initial rate of AIB accumulation (V(o)) varied from 1.1 to 10.2 mumoles/kg cell H(2)O per min in cells from 16 different patients; however, V(o) was reproducible in cells from five of six patients which were studied repeatedly over 1-9 months, and correlated positively with the lymphocyte count (r = 0.51, P = < 0.01). Virtually total inhibition of protein synthesis with cycloheximide was found to decrease the accumulation of AIB in cells from four patients which had high rates of AIB transport, but had no effect on transport in cells from four patients which accumulated AIB more slowly. These results indicate that active transport depends, in part, upon the presence of labile protein with a turnover rate which varies among different cell populations. Treatment with 10 muM cortisol for 240 min in vitro reduced the initial rate of AIB-3-(14)C accumulation (V(o)) by 43.4+/-4.1% (SE) (range, 9-66%) in cells from 16 patients. The degree of inhibition did not vary appreciably over a 9 month period in four of five patients. The effect of cortisol was proportional to its starting concentration, and developed at low concentrations (0.1-1.0 muM). Cortisol appears to decrease AIB accumulation by inhibiting active uptake, since it neither enhanced the exodus of AIB, nor inhibited apparently nonsaturable transport. Inhibition was noncompetitive in type, suggesting that cortisol decreases the total capacity of the active transport mechanism.Cortisol inhibited AIB transport indirectly by a process which involved de novo protein synthesis, since inhibition (a) appeared only after 60 min of treatment, (b) was present in treated cells which were subsequently incubated for 60 min in cortisol-free medium, and (c) failed to develop during simultaneous blockade of protein synthesis with cycloheximide, even when cycloheximide itself did not decrease AIB transport.

Study of calcium absorption in man: a kinetic analysis and physiologic model.

A physical model of calcium absorption was developed from analysis of data obtained on 23 subjects, including 13 patients having a variety of abnormalities of calcium metabolism. The model was tested and found consistent in all subjects studied. This technique provides a quantitative description of the rate of entry of oral dose of (47)Ca into the circulation as a function of time by analysis of serum or forearm radioactivity in response to intravenous and oral administration of (47)Ca. The kinetics of the absorption process as proposed by the model are characterized by an initial delay phase of 15-20 min, by a maximal rate of absorption at 40-60 min after ingestion, and by 95% completion of the absorption within 2(1/2) hr. Partial identification of the physiological counterparts of the model was possible by introduction of the isotope at various levels of the gut. Although the region of the duodenum was found to have the greatest rate of absorption per unit length in normal subjects, it was least responsive to stimulation by parathyroid hormone and suppression by calcium loading. Furthermore, the response of the gut to parathyroid hormone was delayed, whereas the suppression of absorption by intravenous or oral calcium loading was rapid and dramatic. The implications of these observations are discussed.

Human osteoblasts in vitro secrete tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases and gelatinase but not interstitial collagenase as major cellular products.

Human osteoblast cultures (hOB) were examined for the production of interstitial collagenase, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases (TIMP), and gelatinolytic enzymes. Cells were isolated by bacterial collagenase digestion of trabecular bone (vertebra, rib, tibia, and femur) from 11 subjects (neonatal to adult). Confluent cultures were exposed to phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate, PTH, PGE2, epidermal growth factor, 1,25(OH)2 vitamin D3, recombinant human IL-1 beta, and dexamethasone. Collagenase and TIMP were assayed immunologically and also by measurements of functional activity. Collagenase was not secreted in significant quantities by human bone cells under any tested condition. Furthermore, collagenase mRNA could not be detected in hOB. However, hOB spontaneously secreted large amounts of TIMP for at least 72 h in culture. hOB TIMP was found to be identical to human fibroblast TIMP by double immunodiffusion, metabolic labeling and immunoprecipitation, Northern blot analysis, and stoichiometry of collagenase inhibition. SDS-substrate gel electrophoresis of hOB-conditioned media revealed a prominent band of gelatinolytic activity at 68 kD, and specific polyclonal antisera established its identity with the major gelatinolytic protease of human fibroblasts. Abundant secretion of gelatinolytic, but not collagenolytic, enzymes by hOB may indicate that human osteoblasts do not initiate and direct the cleavage of osteoid collagen on the bone surface, but may participate in the preparation of the bone surface for osteoclast attachment by removal of denatured collagen peptides. The constitutive secretion of TIMP may function to regulate metalloproteinase activity.

A high affinity, calmodulin-responsive (Ca2+ + Mg2+)-ATPase in isolated bone cells.

Although acute alterations in Ca2+ fluxes may mediate the skeletal responses to certain humoral agents, the processes subserving those fluxes are not well understood. We have sought evidence for Ca2+-dependent ATPase activity in isolated osteoblast-like cells maintained in primary culture. Two Ca2+-dependent ATPase components were found in a plasma membrane fraction: a high affinity component (half-saturation constant for Ca2+ of 280 nM, Vmax of 13.5 nmol/mg per min) and a low affinity component, which was in reality a divalent cation ATPase, since Mg2+ could replace Ca2+ without loss of activity. The high affinity component exhibited a pH optimum of 7.2 and required Mg2+ for full activity. It was unaffected by potassium or sodium chloride, ouabain or sodium azide, but was inhibited by lanthanum and by the calmodulin antagonist trifluoperazine. This component was prevalent in a subcellular fraction which was also enriched in 5'-nucleotidase and adenylate cyclase activities, suggesting the plasma membrane as its principal location. Osteosarcoma cells, known to resemble osteoblasts in their biological characteristics and responses to bone-seeking hormones, contained similar ATPase activities. Inclusion of purified calmodulin in the assay system caused small non-reproducible increases in the Ca2+-dependent ATPase activity of EGTA-washed membranes. Marked, consistent calmodulin stimulation was demonstrated in membranes exposed previously to trifluoperazine and then washed in trifluoperazine-free buffer. These results indicate the presence of a high affinity, calmodulin-sensitive Ca2+-dependent ATPase in osteoblast-like bone cells. As one determinant of Ca2+ fluxes in bone cells, this enzyme may participate in the hormonal regulation of bone cell function.

Characterization and hormonal modulation of IL-1 binding in neonatal mouse osteoblastlike cells.

Considerable evidence indicates that interleukin-1 (IL-1) is a potent regulator of bone cell activity. Consequently, we studied its binding to neonatal mouse osteoblastlike cells. Purified, labeled recombinant IL-1 alpha bound specifically to neonatal mouse osteoblastlike cells with a dissociation constant of 30-200 pM at 22 degrees C. There were 3000-15,000 receptors per cell. IL-1 bound to cell surfaces at 4 degrees C was rapidly internalized when the temperature was raised to 37 degrees C. Receptor specificity was confirmed by demonstrating that, among a series of 11 polypeptides, only IL-1 inhibited 125I-IL-1 binding. Treatment of surface-bound 125I-IL-1 alpha with a bivalent water-soluble cross-linker identified a membrane peptide of Mr 70,000 cross-linked to IL-1. The apparent IL-1 receptor was solubilized from a plasma membrane-enriched fraction using 3-[(3-cholamidopropyldimethylammonio]-1-propanesulfonate (CHAP). The resulting material exhibited specific IL-1 binding. Preincubation of cells with IL-1, retinoic acid, transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta), or phorbol ester caused a reduction in apparent receptor numbers per cell, while preincubation with epidermal growth factor (EGF), dexamethasone, or parathyroid hormone (PTH) increased receptor numbers per cell. Preincubation with insulin, vitamin D, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), and 17 beta-estradiol had no effect. These results suggest that specific, high-affinity IL-1 receptors are present on osteoblastlike cells and that the receptor number can be modified by various osteotropic agents. Regulation of bone cell IL-1 receptors may contribute to the control of bone remodeling.

Bone-resorbing agents promote and interferon-gamma inhibits bone cell collagenase production.

Parathyroid hormone, prostaglandin E2, 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3, interleukin-1, tumor necrosis factor alpha, and epidermal growth factor, all known stimulators of bone resorption, markedly enhanced collagenase secretion by rat fetus osteoblastlike cells in primary culture as judged by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Untreated cells contained no immunostainable or extractable collagenase. Collagenase was detected in the treated cells and media only after 1-3 h of treatment, and there was no increment in collagenase activity when cells were treated in the presence of actinomycin D or cycloheximide. Cells secreted collagenase in a latent form and also elaborated collagenase inhibitor; chromatographic separation of collagenase from collagenase inhibitor and subsequent activation of the collagenase with trypsin yielded the active species in stimulated but not in unstimulated cells. The ability of individual prostanoids, among seven tested, to promote collagenase production correlated positively with their reported capacity to promote bone resorption. Interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), a known resorption inhibitor, blocked the increment in collagenase production caused by all agents tested. These results indicate a close linkage between stimulation of bone resorption and collagenase production by osteoblastlike cells. Various resorption stimulators, including some not previously tested for effects on collagenase, augment the de novo synthesis and secretion of collagenase and act by an IFN-gamma-inhibitable mechanism.

Prostaglandins change cell shape and increase intercellular gap junctions in osteoblasts cultured from rat fetal calvaria.

Mounting experimental evidence indicates that osteoblasts may be cellular intermediaries in the local activation of bone remodeling. To elucidate the role of these cells in activation, we examined the effects of prostaglandins (PGs), known resorption stimulators, on cell shape and intercellular junctional relationships in osteoblasts cultured from rat fetal calvaria. Exposure to PGE2 and PGE1, promoters of bone resorption, rapidly (within 20 min) converted the osteoblasts from a flattened to a stellate shape (shape change), and markedly increased the appearance of intercellular (gap) junctions within 10 min. Both effects were directly related to the prostaglandin concentration, as little as 1 nM being effective. PGE1, but not PGB1, PGF1 alpha, PGD2, and PGF2 alpha, mimicked the substantial effect of PGE2 on shape change. Shape change and gap junction formation appear to arise independently. PTH, an inducer of shape change, did not affect the number of gap junctions appreciably. Colchicine, a microtubule polymerization inhibitor, and trifluoperazine, an inhibitor of calmodulin action, blunted PGE2-mediated shape change but not the effect of PGE2 on gap junctions. Shape change and gap junction formation may be important events in local activation, shape changes in surface osteoblasts serving to expose bone surfaces which are chemotactic for osteoclasts and gap junctions propagating locally initiated activation messages.

J774A.1 macrophage cell line produces PDGF-like and non-PDGF-like growth factors for bone cells.

In light of evidence that macrophages participate in the local regulation of bone remodeling, we have examined the production of peptide stimulators of bone cell growth and specialization by the J774A.1 macrophage cell line. Cultured J774A.1 cells secrete growth-promoting activities which have an affinity for heparin. The first partially purified material, termed HEP I, appears to contain platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-like activity. It has a molecular weight of about 30,000 daltons, inhibits the binding of labeled PDGF to its receptors, reacts with polyclonal anti-human PDGF antibody, and exhibits mitogenic activity for osteoblasts, which is partially blocked by anti-PDGF antisera. Like PDGF, HEP I is active in a wide variety of mesenchyme-derived cells, including osteoblasts, chondrocytes, smooth muscle cells, fibroblasts, 3T3 cells and NRK cells. The J774A.1 cells contain mRNA, which hybridizes to a v-sis DNA probe, suggesting that they express the c-sis gene, which contains the code for a PDGF-like protein. The second factor, HEP II, has an approximate molecular weight of 20,000 daltons and possesses substantial mitogenic activity for osteoblasts, chondrocytes, and smooth muscle cells, but is not mitogenic for fibroblasts, 3T3 cells, and NRK cells. HEP II appears to be a unique bone cell mitogen, which is distinct from the growth factors presently known. Neither HEP I nor HEP II contained interleukin 1, a macrophage product known to promote bone resorption and perhaps the growth and activity of osteoblasts.

Evidence for interleukin-1 beta production by cultured normal human osteoblast-like cells.

To determine if bone cells produce interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), a potent bone resorption-stimulating agent, we studied well-characterized, nearly homogeneous cultures of normal human osteoblast-like (hOB) cells. With four strains of such cells, vehicle-treated cultures produced minimal IL-1 beta (mean +/- SEM, 1.3 +/- 0.3 pg/ml per 10(6) cells per 24 h) and showed dose-dependent (r = 0.99) increases to 2.2 +/- 0.7, 5.0 +/- 0.9, or 17.8 +/- 6.7 pg/ml, respectively, after treatment with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) at 3, 10, or 30 micrograms/ml (for increases after 10 and 30 micrograms/ml treatments, P less than 0.05). After treatment with tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) at 10 U/ml, IL-1 beta increased to 16.2 +/- 3.7 pg/ml (P less than 0.05). Neither 17 beta-estradiol nor bovine parathyroid hormone(1-34) (each at 10 nM), alone or in combination with LPS or TNF-alpha, affected IL-1 beta release. Northern blot analysis of total cellular RNA preparation revealed a single hybridization band at 1.9 kb when probed with a partially deleted cDNA for human IL-1 beta. The steady-state IL-1 beta mRNA levels showed a significant increase with LPS treatment and a lesser increase with TNF-alpha treatment in hOB cells. Moreover, TNF-alpha produced an even greater increase in IL-1 mRNA in HOBIT cells, a well-differentiated clonal cell line derived from normal hOB cells transfected with the SV40 large T antigen. We conclude that human cells of the osteoblast lineage produce IL-1 beta in response to well-recognized stimuli for IL-1 release from responsive tissue.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Fetal rat chondrocytes sequentially elaborate separate growth- and differentiation-promoting peptides during their development in vitro.

Chondrocytes isolated from the calvaria of rat fetuses proliferate and form cartilage when cultured in a chemically defined, serum-free medium, suggesting that they may elaborate self-regulatory factors. Conditioned media obtained from these chondrocytes stimulated DNA synthesis and proliferation when added to separate cultures of chondrocytes and the closely related osteoblast-like cells, but were not very effective in skin fibroblasts isolated from the same fetuses, as judged by [3H]thymidine incorporation and cell proliferation. Chondrocyte-conditioned medium also promoted chondrocyte differentiation, augmenting 35SO4 incorporation, and the accumulation of type II collagen and cartilage-specific proteoglycan. Stimulation of growth and differentiation appears to be attributable to separate activities, released into the medium sequentially by the cultured chondrocytes during their proliferation and maturation phases. Media obtained from growing chondrocytes stimulated growth, but had little effect on 35SO4 incorporation. Media obtained from mature cultures promoted growth as well as 35SO4 incorporation. The mitogenic and sulfation activities were trypsin inhibitable, but exhibited different solubility characteristics and striking differences in their patterns of elution from gel filtration columns. These results suggest that chondrocytes elaborate autostimulatory peptides, the biological activities of which mirror, at least in part, the developmental stage of the donor cells.

Adenosine-mediated stimulation of bone cell adenylate cyclase activity.

Adenosine rapidly stimulated adenylate cyclase activity but did not modify cyclic AMP degradation when added to a particulate fraction prepared from isolated bone cells. The effect of adenosine was one-half maximal at 5-10 micronM, and was not mimicked by 5' AMP, inosine, guanosine, uridine, adenine, or ribose. Basal and adenosine-stimulated adenylate cyclase activites were directly proportional to the concentration of particulate protein in the assay system. Theophylline decreased the degree to which adenosine stimulated adenylate cyclase activity, whereas another phosphodiesterase inhibitor, RO-20-1724, failed to iiinfluence the effect of adenosine. Adenosine itself, and not a metabolite of adenosine is the stimulator of adenylate cyclase, since it was neither phosphorylated nor deaminated appreciably by the particulate fraction. The particulate fraction did not convert substrate ATP to adenosine in amounts sufficient to enhance adenylate cyclase. The stimulatory effect of adenosine was maximal at 1.2 mM Mg2+, declined with increases in the Mg2+ concentration, and was replaced by inhibition at 20 mM Mg2+. At 2.4 mM Mg2+, basal adenylate cyclase activity peaked at 1.1 mM ATP, and was inhibited by higher ATP concentrations. The magnitude of adenosine stimulation was greater at inhibitory concentrations of ATP than at concentrations which yielded maximum activity. The results suggest that the previously demonstrated ability of adenosine to increase cyclic 3'5' AMP levels in intact bone cells stems from its effect on adenylate cyclase. Adenosine may act by modifying the regulatory nfluence of free Mg2+, uncomplexed ATP, (or both), on adenylate cyclase. Theophylline appears to interfere with the action of adenosine by a mechanism which is distinct from its capacity to inhibit cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase activity. (Endocrinology 99:901,1976)

Evidence for preferential effects of parathyroid hormone, calcitonin and adenosine on bone and periosteum.

In order to explore the distribution of hormone-responsive cells in skeletal tissues, we have examined the effects of synthetic bovine parathyroid hormone N-terminal peptide (bPTH 1-34) and salmon calcitonin (sCT) on cyclic AMP levels in periosteum-free rat calvaria, segments of periosteum, and in isolated cells dispersed from each tissue by collagenase digestion. Synthetic bovine PTH increased cyclic AMP levels to a greater degree in calvaria and in isolated bone cells than in the periosteal segments and cells, whereas sCT was more effective in the periosteal than in the bone systems. Primary cultures prepared from bone and periosteal cell populations exhibited progressive increases in their responsiveness to bPTH (1-34) and progressive decreases in responsiveness to sCT. After six days in the culture, bone cells failed to respond to sCT, and sCT did not modify their response simultaneously added bPTH (1-34). Six-day periosteal cell cultures exhibited residual sCT responsivity and an additive response upon simultaneous exposure to high concentrations of bPTH (1-34) and sCT suggesting separate sites of hormone action. Adenosine, a known stimulator of bone cell adenylyl cyclase, caused a greater increase in periosteal cell than in bone cell cyclic AMP. bPTH (1-34)-responsive cells which enrich periosteum-free bone may be osteoblasts, in view of their histological prominence in this tissue and in the bone cell isolates. Periosteal cells which responded to sCT and to adenosine preferentially are unidentified. Although periosteal segments contained numerous fibroblast-like cells, skin fibroblasts cultured from the same fetuses were sCT-insensitive. Growth in primary culture appears to alter the number of hormone-responsive cells or responsiveness of existing cells to each hormone, or both.

Calcitonin response in circulating human lymphocytes.

The concentration of cAMP increases in human mononuclear leukocytes after exposure to salmon calcitonin (SCT). This response is lost when the cells are separated into adherent (monocytic) and nonadherent (lymphocytic) cells, although the appropriate response to prostaglandin E2 remains in both groups. Adherent and nonadherent cells, each cultured alone for 16 h, do not regain the SCT response. Coculturing adherent and nonadherent cells together for 16 h restores the SCT response in the lymphocytes. The addition of a cyclooxygenase inhibitor to this culture system prevents development of the SCT response. The SCT response may be induced in nonadherent cells by culturing them for 16 h in medium previously conditioned by the growth of mixed mononuclear leukocytes.

Falls in the elderly: reliability of a classification system.

To determine risk factors for falls, previous studies have classified falls according to the contribution of factors both intrinsic and extrinsic to the host. Due partly to the lack of operational definitions and the absence of information on reliability, no consensus on classification has been reached. Consequently, in a 3-year prospective study of falls occurring in a probability sample of community-dwelling elderly (n = 1,358), a fall classification system was developed and tested for interrater reliability. The 366 falls in the first year of the study were independently classified by two reviewers on the basis of a narrative description and structured interview. The falls in the four major categories of the classification system included: falls related to extrinsic factors (55%), falls related to intrinsic factors (39%), falls from a non-bipedal stance (8%) and unclassified falls (7%). The interrater reliability for the four major categories was 89.9% with a kappa of 0.828. The system provides operational definitions for types of falls and a reliable and flexible method for classifying falls in the elderly.

Macrophages release a peptide stimulator of osteoblast growth.

Cells of the monocyte-macrophage series play multiple roles in bone resorption; they appear to act as osteoclast precursors and are known to elaborate several substances which promote osteoclast activity. Because bone formation is closely linked (coupled) to resorption under physiological conditions, we explored the possibility that macrophages also elaborate a stimulator of bone formation. Our results indicate that rat resident peritoneal and bone marrow macrophages elaborate a potent stimulator of DNA synthesis and growth in osteoblasts (as well as chondrocytes) cultured from the calvaria of rat fetuses. Growth factor activity resides mainly in a 43 000-dalton heat-stable protein, though a lower molecular weight peptide (Mr approximately 10 000) also contained growth-promoting activity. In contrast to osteoblasts and chondrocytes, skin fibroblasts prepared from the same rat fetuses exhibited only a minimal response to the macrophage-derived factor, though they responded briskly to epidermal and fibroblast growth factors. These findings are consistent with the thesis that macrophages direct both phases of remodeling, resorption and formation, and therefore may be responsible for coupling these events.