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The calcium-mobilizing agents thapsigargin and 2,5-di-(tert-butyl)-1,4- benzohydroquinone were shown to markedly elevate the intracellular calcium concentration of chick embryo chondrocytes in a dose-dependent manner. Under these conditions, the metabolism of macromolecules was variably affected. The synthesis and secretion of protein in general, and of collagen in particular, were significantly inhibited; in contrast, proteoglycan synthesis (but not glycosaminoglycan synthesis) was inhibited, whereas secretion was unaffected. Flunarizine, which prevented the thapsigargin-induced intracellular calcium elevation, and EGTA, which caused only a transient thapsigargin-induced intracellular calcium elevation, did not reverse these alterations. It was concluded, therefore, that the observed effects of thapsigargin and 2,5-di-(tert-butyl)-1,4-benzohydroquinone on chondrocyte macromolecule metabolism were not related to the ability of these drugs to increase the cytosolic free calcium concentration but may have been due to the specific depletion of the calcium sequestered in the endoplasmic reticulum. The differential effect of these drugs on protein and proteoglycan secretion suggests that the intracellular trafficking of these two classes of macromolecules may be controlled independently.

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Incorporation of [35S]sulphate by cultures of matrix-free cells from chick embryo sterna in the presence of the glutamine analogue 6-diazo-5-oxo-L-norleucine (0.58 mM) was inhibited in a time-dependent manner to less than 15% of that in control cultures after 2 h. Characterization of the major cartilage proteoglycan synthesized under these conditions showed that it contained few, if any, normal-sized chondroitin sulphate chains and only about half of the normal complement of substituted serine residues. Subsequent addition of D-glucosamine hydrochloride (final concn. 2 mM) resulted in a time-dependent recovery of [35S]sulphate incorporation to 90% of control cultures after 2 h, but restored the chondroitin sulphate chains to normal size within 15 min. On the basis of these results, it is concluded that a 2 h preincubation is necessary to deplete the chondrocytes of the endogenous supply of UDP-N-acetyl-D-glucosamine required for optimal glycoconjugate synthesis, and that this situation results in the synthesis of a chondroitin sulphate proteoglycan with significantly altered properties, owing to the paucity of glycosaminoglycan chains; however, this condition is completely reversible if the D-glucosamine pool is repleted.