Effects of Basic Fibroblast Growth Factor and Insulin-like Growth Factor on Cultured Cartilage Cells from Skate Raja porasa

Effects of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and insulin like growth factor II (IGF II) on cartilage cells from proboscis of skate, Raja porasa Günther, were investigated in this study. The cartilage cells were cultured in 20% FBS supplemented MEM medium at 24℃. Twelve hours after culture initiation, the cartilage cells were treated with bFGF and IGF II at different concentration combinations. It was found that 20 ng/ml of bFGF or 80 ng/ml of IGF II was enough to have obvious stimulating effect on the growth and division of skate cartilage cells. Test of bFGF and IGF II together, revealed that 20 ng/ml of bFGF and 80 ng/ml of IGF II together had the best stimulating effect on the growth and division of skate cartilage cells. The cartilage cells cultured could form a monolayer at day 7.

Research Progress on the Application of Icariin in Osteoarthritis Treatment

Osteoarthritis(OA)is a multifaceted bone and joint disease with degenerative changes of articular cartilage.Therefore,the current research on the etiology of OA mainly focuses on the etiology of articular cartilage degeneration.Clarifying the pathogenesis of OA from the molecular level has become an important research topic in the field of orthopedics.Its main pathological features are the decrease of chondrocyte metabolic activity,cartilage matrix degradation,and osteophyte formation.Icariin(ICA)is the main active monomer of epimedium,a traditional Chinese medicine,and the pharmacological research has revealed favorable effects of ICA on the bone system.ICA can promote the proliferation of chondrocytes and inhibit the apoptosis of chondrocytes,alleviate the degradation rate of cartilage matrix,and effectively protect articular cartilage.This review also expounds the mechanism of promoting cartilage repair.

Biodegradable Thermogel as Culture Matrix of Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Potential Cartilage Tissue Engineering

Poly（lactide-co-glycolide）-poly（ethylene glycol）-poly（lactide-co-glycolide）（PLGA-PEG-PLGA） triblock copolymer was synthesized through the ring-opening polymerization of LA and GA with PEG as macroinitiator and stannous octoate as catalyst. The amphiphilic copolymer self-assembled into micelles in aqueous solutions, and formed hydrogels as the increase of temperature at relatively high concentrations（〉 15 wt%）. The favorable degradability of the hydrogel was confirmed by in vitro and in vivo degradation experiments. The good cellular and tissular compatibilities of the thermogel were demonstrated. The excellent adhesion and proliferation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells endowed PLGA-PEGPLGA thermogelling hydrogel with fascinating prospect for cartilage tissue engineering.

Cells from Cow Knee Joints Used to Grow New Cartilage Tissue in Laboratory

In an effort to develop a method for cartilage tissue engineering,researchers successfully used cartilage cells from cow knee joints.By creating a successful method with conditions conducive to growing healthy cartilage tissue,the findings could help lead to a new treatment cure for osteoarthritis using stem cell-based tissue engineering.Articular cartilage is tissue that is found on all the joint surfaces in the body.Since the tissue