The use of growth factors in the proliferation of avian articular chondrocytes in a serum-free culture system

The purpose of this research was to develop a serum-free culture system for the proliferation of articular chondrocytes. Various growth factors and hormones were tested for their ability to stimulate avian articular chondrocyte proliferation in a defined, serum-free media. Multiple members of the fibroblast growth factor (FGF) family (FGFs: 2, 4, and 9), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) significantly stimulated H-3-thymidine uptake by chondrocytes grown in an adherent serum-free, culture system. Double or triple combinations of these mitogenic growth factors further stimulated cell proliferation to levels that were equivalent to, or surpassed those of cells grown in serum. Although proliferation was maximally stimulated, chondrocytes grown in the presence of FGF-2, IGF-1, and TGF-beta, began to exhibit changes in morphology and collagen II expression declined. This culture system could be used to rapidly expand a population of articular chondrocytes prior to transferring these cells to a non-adherent culture system, which could then stabilize the chondrocyte phenotype and maximize matrix synthesis and integrity.