Abstract
We have used antibodies to chondroitin 4- and 6-sulfate and keratan sulfate along with Alcian blue staining of sulfated proteoglycans to investigate changes in content and sulfation within the avian growth plate. In normal chicks, chondroitin 4- and 6-sulfate content were similar in the proliferating and transitional zones but in the hypertrophic zone, chondroitin 4- and 6-sulfate were slightly lower (13% and 18%, respectively) and keratan sulfate was markedly lower (58%). Compared with the proliferative zone, Alcian blue staining of sulfated glycosaminoglycans was markedly lower in both the transitional (46%) and hypertrophic (22%) zones. In tibial dyschondroplasia, where chondrocyte maturation is arrested at the transitional zone, there was no difference in the chondroitin 4- and 6-sulfate or keratan sulfate staining between the proliferative and transitional zones, which were similar to normal birds. With Alcian blue staining there was no difference in the intensity of the staining within the proliferating zone compared with normal birds but stainign in the transitional chondrocytes was markedly higher (39%). These results suggest that in the early steps of chondrocyte maturation there may be a decrease in the degree of glycosaminoglycan sulfation without any alteration in glycosaminoglycan concentration, and that further maturation may be accompanied by a change in the nature of the proteoglycans which may also affect the level of sulfation.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Isaksson OGP, Lindahl A, Nilsson A, Isgaard J (1987) Mechanism of the stimulatory effect of growth hormone on longitudinal bone growth. Endocr Rev 8:426–438
Loveridge N, Thomson BM, Farquharson C (1992) Bone growth and turnover. In: Whitehead CC (ed) Bone biology and skeletal disorders of poultry. Carfax Publishing Co, Oxford, p 3
Solursh M, Jensen KL, Reiter RS, Schmid TM, Linsenmayer TF (1984) Extracellular-matrix mediates epithelial effects of chondrogenesis in vitro. Dev Biol 105:451–457
Sommarin Y, Larsson T, Heinegard D (1989) Chondrocytematrix interactions. Exp Cell Res 184:181–192
Kwan APL, Freemont AJ, Grant ME (1986) Immunoperoxidase localisation of type X collagen in chick tibiae. Biosci Rep 6:155–162
Appleton J (1988) The ultrastructural distribution of proteoglycans in normal and rachitic growth cartilage from the mandibular condyle of the rat. Arch Oral Biol 33:379–381
Leach RM, Nesheim MC (1965) Nutritional, genetic and morphological studies of an abnormal cartilage formation in young chicks. J Nutr 86:236–244
Riddell C (1971) Studies on the pathogenesis of tibial dyschondroplasia in chickens. 1. Production of a similar defect by surgical interference. Avian Dis 15:557–565
Farquharson C, Whitehead CC, Rennie S, Thorp BH, Loveridge N (1992) Cell proliferation and enzyme activities associated with the development of avian tibial dyschondroplasia: an in situ biochemical study. Bone 13:59–67
Loveridge N, Farquharson C, Hesketh JE, Jakowlew SB, Whitehead CC, Thorp BH (1993) The control of chondrocyte differentiation during endochondral bone growth in vivo: changes in TGF-β and the proto-oncogene c-myc. J Cell Sci 105:949–956
Buckwalter JA, Rosenberg LC, Ungar, R (1987) Changes in proteoglycan aggregates during cartilage mineralization. Calcif Tissue Int 41:228–236
Campo RD, Romano JE (1986) Changes in cartilage proteoglycans associated with calcification. Calcif Tissue Int 39:175–184
Buckwalter JA, Rosenberg L (1986) Structural changes in reassembled growth cartilage aggregates. J Orthop Res 4:1–9
Horton WA, Machado MM (1988) Extracellular matrix alterations during endochondral ossification in humans. J Orthop Res 6:793–803
Muir H (1983) Proteoglycans as organisers of the intercellular matrix. Biochem Soc Trans 11:613–622
Heinegard D, Sommarin Y (1987) Proteoglycans: an overview. Methods Enzymol 144:305–319
Hardingham TE, Fosang AJ (1992) Proteoglycans: many forms and many functions. FASEB J 6:861–870
Oldberg A, Antonsson P, Hedbom E, Heinegard D (1990) Structure and function of extracellular matrix proteoglycans. Biochem Soc Trans 18:789–792
Pita JC, Cuervo LA, Madruga JE, Muller FJ, Howell DS (1970) Evidence for a role of protein polysaccharide association with the onset of calcification in cartilage. J Clin Invest 49:2188–2196
de Bernard B, Stagni N, Colautti I, Vittur F, Bonucci E (1977) Glycosaminoglycans and endochondral calcification. Clin Orthop Rel Res 126:285–291
Reddi AH, Kuettner KE (1981) Vascular invasion of cartilage: correlation of morphology with lysozyme, glycosaminoglycans, protease, and protease inhibitory activity during endochondral bone development. Dev Biol 82:217–223
Futami T, Ototani N, Nagatsuka Y, Yosizawa Z (1979) Comparison of carbohydrate-containing substances from noncalcified and calcified portions of bovine costal cartilage. J Biochem 85:1067–1073
Boyd A, Shapiro IM (1980) Energy dispersive x-ray elemental analysis of isolated epiphysael growth plate chondrocyte fragments. Histochemistry 69:85–94
Orkin RW, Williams BR, Cranley RE, Poppke DC, Brown KS (1977) Defects in the cartilaginous growth plates of brachymorphic mice. J Cell Biol 73:287–299
Boskey AL, Maresca M, Wilkstrom B, Hjerpe A (1991) Hydroxyapatite formation in the presence of proteoglycans of reduced sulfate content: studies in the brachymorphic mouse. Calcif Tissue Int 49:389–393
Luft JH (1971) Ruthenium red and violet II. Fine structural localization in animal tissues. Anat Rec 171:369–377
Shepard NL, Mitchell S (1976) The localisation of proteoglycan by light and electron microscopy using safranin O. J Ultrastruct Res 54:451–460
Schofield BH, Williams BR, Doty SB (1975) Alcian blue staining of cartilage for electron microscopy. Application of the critical electrolyte concentration principle. Histochem J 7:139–145
Couchman JR, Caterson B, Christner JE, Baker JR (1984) Mapping monoclonal antibody detection of glycosaminoglycans in connective tissue. Nature 307:650–652
Caterson B, Christner JE, Baker JR, Couchman JR (1985) Production and characterization of monoclonal antibodies directed against connective tissue proteoglycans. Fed Proc 44: 386–393
Zanetti M, Ratcliffe A, Watt FM (1985) Two subpopulations of the differentiated chondrocytes identified with a monoclonal antibody to keratan sulphate. J Cell Biol 101: 53–59
Mehmet H, Scudder P, Tang PW, Hounsell EF, Caterson B, Feizi T (1986) The antigenic determinants recognised by three monoclonal antibodies to keratan sulphate involve sulphated hepta- or larger oligosaccharides of the poly (N-acetyllactosamine) series. Eur J Biochem 157: 385–391
Thorp BH, Whitehead CC, Rennie JS (1991) Avian tibial dyschondroplasis: a comparison of the incidence and severity as assessed by gross examination and histopathology. Res Vet Sci 51: 48–54
Poole AR, Pidoux I (1989) Immunoelectron microscopic studies of type X collagen in endochondral ossification. J Cell Biol 109: 2547–2554
Sorrell JM, Mahmoodian F, Caterson B (1988) Immunochemical characterization and ultrastructural localization of chondroitin sulfates and keratan sulfate in embryonic chick bone marrow. Cell Tissue Res 252: 523–531
Smith JC, Watt FM (1985) Biochemical specificity of Xenopus notochord. Differentiation 29: 109–115
Scott JE, Dorling J (1965) Differential staining of acidic glycosaminoglycans (mucopolysaccharides) by Alcian blue in salt solutions. Histochemie 5: 221–233
Chayen J, Bitensky L (1991) Practical histochemistry, 2nd ed. John Wiley & Sons, London, New York
Ealey PA, Henderson B, Loveridge N (1984) A quantitative study of peroxidase activity in unfixed tissue of the guinea pig thyroid gland. Histochem J 16: 111–122
Horne Z, Hesketh HE (1990) Immunological localization of ribosomes in striated rat muscle. Biochem J 268: 231–236
Dunham J, Shackleton DR, Nahir AM, Billingham EJ, Bitensky L, Chayen J, Muir H (1985) Altered orientation of glycosaminoglycans and cellular changes in the tibial cartilage in the first two weeks of experimental canine osteoarthritis. J Orthop Res 3: 258–268
Jibril O (1967) Proteolytic degradation of ossifying cartilage matrix and the removal of acid mucopolysaccharides prior to bone formation. Biochim Biophys Acta 136: 162–165
Suzuki K, Takase T, Takigawa M, Uchida A, Shimomur Y (1981) Simulation of the initial stage of endochondral ossification: in vitro sequential culture of growth cartilage cells and bone marrow cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 78: 2368–2372
Dziewiatkowski DD, Majznerski LL (1985) Role of proteoglycans in endochondral ossification. Calcif Tissue Int 37: 560–567
Hunter GK, Grynpas MD, Cheng P-T, Pritzker KPH (1987) Effect of glycosaminoglycans on calcium pyrophosphate crystal formation in collagen gels. Calcif Tissue Int 41: 164–169
Chen CC, Boskey AL, Rosenberg LC (1984) The inhibitory effect of cartilage proteoglycans on hydroxyapatite growth. Calcif Tissue Int 36: 285–290
Bianco P, Fisher LW, Young MF, Termine JD, Robey PG (1990) Expression and localisation of the two small proteoglycans biglycan and decorin in developing human skeletal and non-skeletal tissues. J Histochem Cytochem 38: 1549–1563
Robey PG, Bianco P, Termine JD (1992) The cellular biology and molecular biochemistry of bone formation. In: Coe FL, Favus MJ (eds) Disorders of bone and mineral metabolism. Raven Press Ltd, New York, p 241
Scherft J, Moskalewski S (1984) The amount of proteoglycans in cartilage matrix and the onset of mineralisation. Metab Bone Dis Rel Res 5: 195–203
Matsui Y, Alini M, Webber C, Poole AR (1991) Characterization of aggregating proteoglycans from the proliferative, maturing, hypertrophic and calcifying zones of the cartilaginous physis. J Bone Joint Surg 73-A: 1064–1074
Arsenault AL, Ottensmeyer FP (1983) Quantitative spatial distributions of calcium, phosphorus, and sulfur in calcifying epiphysis by high resolution electron microscopic imaging. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 80: 322–1326
Hunter GK (1991) Role of proteoglycan in the provisional calcification of cartilage. A review and reinterpretation. Clin Orthop 262: 265–280
Barckhaus RH, Krefting ER, Althoff J, Quint P, Hohling HJ (1971) Electron-microscopic microprobe analysis on the initial stages of mineral formation in the epiphyseal growth plate. Cell Tissue Res 217: 661–670
Weatherell JA, Weidmann SM (1963) The distribution of organically bound sulfate in bone and cartilage calcification. Biochem J 89: 265–273
Sorrell JM, Caterson B (1989) Detection of age-related changes in the distribution of keratan sulfates and chondroitin sulfates in developing chick limbs: an immunocytochemical study. Development 106: 657–663
Byers S, Caterson B, Hopwood JJ, Foster BK (1992) Immunolocation analysis of glycosaminoglycans in the human growth plate. J Histochem Cytochem 40: 275–282
Takagi M, Maeno M, Kagami A, Takahashi Y, Otsuka K (1991) Biochemical and immunocytochemical characterization of mineral binding proteoglycans in rat bone. J Histochem Cytochem 39: 41–50
Poole AR, Pidoux I, Rosenberg L (1982) Role of proteoglycans in endochondral ossification, immunofluorescent localization of link protein and proteoglycan monomer in bovine fetal epiphyseal growth plate. J Cell Biol 92: 249–260
Ecarot-Charrier B, Bouchard F, Delloye C (1989) Bone sialoprotein II synthesised by cultures osteoblasts contains tyrosine sulfate. J Biol Chem 264: 20049–20053
Midura RJ, McQuillan DJ, Benham KJ, Fisher LW, Hascall VC (1990) A rat osteogenic cell line (UMR 106-01) synthesises a highly sulfated form of bone sialoprotein. J Biol Chem 256: 5285–5291
Bianco P, Fisher LW, Young MF, Termine JD, Robey PG (1991) Expression of bone sialoprotein (BSP) in developing human tissues. Calcif Tissue Int 49: 421–426
Reinholt FP, Engfeldt B, Heinegard D, Hjerpe A (1985) Proteoglycans and glycosaminoglycans of normal and strontium rachitic epiphyseal cartilage. Collagen Rel Res 5: 41–53
Orkin RW, Pratt RM, Martin GR (1976) Undersulphated chondroitin sulfate in the cartilage matrix of brachymorphic mice. Dev Biol 50: 82–94
Pennypacker JP, Kimata K, Brown KS (1981) Brachymorphic mice (bm/bm): a generalized biochemical defect expressed primarily in cartilage. Dev Biol 81: 280–287
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Farquharson, C., Whitehead, C.C. & Loveridge, N. Alterations in glycosaminoglycan concentration and sulfation during chondrocyte maturation. Calcif Tissue Int 54, 296–303 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00295954
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00295954