Abstract
The effect of 3 purified peptide growth factors—platelet‐derived growth factor (PDGF), epidermal growth factor (EGF), pituitary fibroblast growth factor (FGF)—heat‐inactivated fetal bovine serum (FBS), insulin, and 0.2 m__M__ ascorbate on synthesis of sulfated proteoglycan by rabbit articular chondrocytes was studied in monolayer culture. Growth of the cells increased linearly as the concentration of heat‐inactivated FBS rose from 0 to 30%. Glycosaminoglycan (GAG) synthesis (^35^SO~4~/μg DNA) was enhanced as the concentration of heat‐inactivated FBS went from 0 to 5%. At higher levels of serum, radiosulfate incorporation declined progressively. Two modes of study of the test factors were used: 1) the dose of the factor was increased while the serum concentration was fixed at a low basal level (1% heat‐inactivated FBS); 2) the dose of the test factor was kept constant but the level of heat‐inactivated FBS varied from 0 to 10%. There was an inverse relationship between GAG and DNA synthesis when proliferation of cells was increased by EGF and platelet lysate. PDGF (1 U/ml) stimulated radiosulfate incorporation as well as DNA formation in the serum‐free medium; the values for GAG synthesis did not increase as the serum concentration increased, but the cell mass did. The action of FGF was intermediate between that of EGF and PDGF: with 50 ng FGF/ml, increasing concentrations of serum caused a large progressive reduction of radiosulfate incorporation as growth was stimulated. In basal medium, however, FGF caused mild enhancement of GAG synthesis. Insulin increased aggregatable proteoglycan production far out of proportion to its growth‐promoting activity in the presence of 1% heat‐inactivated FBS. The response was effaced when higher concentrations of serum were employed. Ascorbate had a unique anabolic effect, increasing both cell growth and proteoglycan synthesis that is not suppressed by higher concentrations of serum. The content of serum and its several peptide and hormonal components thus have divergent effects on growth and proteoglycan synthesis in cell culture. This phenomenon must be taken into account in studying biochemical processes and pharmacologic reactions of articular chondrocytes in vitro.