Low-intensity photobiomodulation at 632.8 nm increases tgfβ3, col2a1, and sox9 gene expression in rat bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells in vitro

Methods of Modification of Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Conditions of Their Culturing for Hyaline Cartilage Tissue Engineering

“…While the correlation between chondrogenic differentiation and a low oxygen concentration and a high physical load is, in our opinion, logically predictable (these are natural conditions of hyaline cartilage proliferation in the body), the effect of electromagnetic radiation on chondrogenic differentiation is not directly obvious. For example, as we showed previously [141], the low-intensity coherent electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength of 638.2 nm significantly increases expression of tgfb3, sox9, and col2a1 genes leadings to chondrogenic differentiation of MSCs and initiation aggregation of cellular elements; however, this physical factor had a weaker effect than treatment of the same MSC culture with the recombinant human TGF-β3 protein, a key cytokine responsible for chondrogenesis.…”

“…Today, the main physical parameters affecting chondrogenic cell proliferation are periodic physical (mechanical) stress, hypoxia, and electromagnetic radiation (photobiomodulation) [136][137][138][139][140][141], and the consequent transformation of the physical signal into a biochemical signal mediated by integrins and the focal adhesion (FA) protein complex [147].…”

“…The cartilage ECM is characterized by a high-water content (up to 80%) [151] and low permeability, and consequently, exposure to load creates hydrostatic pressure (HP), which varies depending on the intensity of physical activity from 2 to 18 MPa [141,152]. The physiological levels of HP (5 MPa) significantly enhance the synthesis of the cartilage matrix [152,153], a high hydrostatic pressure (25 MPa) induces proosteoarthritic effects (Col II and aggrecan inhibition, increased expression of metalloproteinases and their synthesis) [154], while a low hydrostatic pressure (100-300 kPa) promotes osteogenic differentiation (increased expression of Runx2, ALP, and osteopontin) [155], resulting in bone tissue from MSCs rather than normal hyaline cartilage being formed (Figure 2).…”

“…Presently, many physical, chemical and biological factors are known that affect the direction of stem cell differentiation [37,70,[136][137][138][139][140][141][142][143][144][145][146]. In principle, these factors can be divided into three groups: physical, chemical, and genetic (Figure 1).…”

“…Consequently, the exposure of cell culture and/or CEC to physical factors is important for tissue engineering of MSCs, even though the mechanisms of the changes that occur remain largely unknown, and the biophysical data are recommended to be used when designing CECs to replace hyaline cartilage [160]. An interesting fact is that some physical methods for hyaline cartilage repair had been introduced in clinical practice much earlier than the underlying for molecular mechanisms underlying their effect became understood [141]. In our opinion, the accumulated evidence suggests that the presence of a bioreactor with controlled mechanical load and reduced oxygen concentration is at least desirable, but possibly already imperative to ensure chondrogenic cell proliferation and autologous hyaline cartilage regeneration, which is a challenging technical task.…”