INTRODUCTION:Numerous experimental efforts have been undertaken to induce the healing of lesions within articular cartilage by re-establishing competent repair tissue. Adult mesenchymal stem cells have attracted attention as a source of cells for cartilage tissue engineering. The purpose of this study was to investigate chondrogenesis employing periosteal mesenchymal cells.METHODS:Periosteum was harvested from patients who underwent orthopedic surgeries. Mesenchymal stem cells were characterized through flow cytometry using specific antibodies. The stem cells were divided into four groups. Two groups were stimulated with transforming growth factor β3 (TGF-β3), of which one group was cultivated in a monolayer culture and the other was cultured in a micromass culture. The remaining two groups were cultivated in monolayer or micromass cultures in the absence of TGF-β3. Cell differentiation was verified through quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and using western blot analysis.RESULT:In the groups cultured without TGF-β3, only the cells maintained in the micromass culture expressed type II collagen. Both the monolayer and the micromass groups that were stimulated with TGF-β3 expressed type II collagen, which was observed in both quantitative RT-PCR and western blot analysis. The expression of type II collagen was significantly greater in the micromass system than in the monolayer system.CONCLUSION:The results of this study demonstrate that the interactions between the cells in the micromass culture system can regulate the proliferation and differentiation of periosteal mesenchymal cells during chondrogenesis and that this effect is enhanced by TGF-β3.

TGF-ss3 used in micromass culture is the best growth factor for promoting the proliferation and differentiation of mesenchymal cells from umbilical cord blood during chondrogenesis. This approach may provide an alternative to autologous grafting.

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O objetivo foi comparar a consolidação óssea em tíbias de ratas normais e osteopênicas. 49 ratas albinas fêmeas, linhagem Wistar, peso médio de 160 (± 20g) e 100 dias foram distribuídas em 2 grupos: Ooforectomizado (OOF) e Pseudo-ooforectomizado (Grupo controle - SHAM). 30 dias após a ooforectomia e/ou cirurgia simulada, todas foram submetidas à produção de lesão óssea cortical. Foram sacrificadas na 2ª, 4ª, 6ª e 8ª semanas. Os osteoblastos foram contados. O peso aumentou progressivamente, porém as OOF apresentaram maior peso (p<0,05) quando comparadas as SHAM, à época da segunda cirurgia. 15 dias pós-lesão óssea, as OOF apresentaram maior número de osteoblastos (p<0,05) quando comparados as SHAM. 30 dias pós-lesão óssea houve diminuição no número de osteoblastos, porém os valores foram equivalentes entre os dois grupos OOF e SHAM. 45 dias pós-lesão, apesar da diminuição constante de osteoblastos, o grupo OOF permaneceu elevado quando comparado ao grupo controle (p<0,05). Aos 60 dias o grupo SHAM apresentou menos osteoblastos, sugerindo processo avançado de reparo ósseo. Os animais osteopênicos apresentaram resposta inicial acelerada à lesão óssea, possibilitando a equivalência entre os grupos 30 dias pós-lesão. Mas, após este período apresentaram retardo na mineralização do osteóide, sugerindo atraso tardio no processo de reparo ósseo.

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