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Effect of Longan polysaccharides on proliferation and phenotype maintenance in rabbit articular chondrocytes in vitro

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Abstract

For autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI) to restore cartilage defect, limited cell numbers and dedifferentiation of chondrocytes are the major difficulties. An alternative is the use of growth factors, but the high cost and potential tumorigenesis are the major obstacles. To ensure successful ACI therapy, it is of significance to find effective substituted pro-chondrogenic agent. Polysaccharides from plant extract have low toxicity and few undesirable side effects, which were reported to facilitate cartilage regeneration. In this study, we investigated the effect of Longan polysaccharides (LP) on rabbit articular chondrocytes through examination of the cell proliferation, morphology, viability, glycosaminoglycan synthesis and cartilage-specific gene expression. Results showed that close to the positive group which used the growth factor of TGF-β, LP could effectively promote chondrocytes growth and enhance secretion and synthesis of cartilage extracellular matrix by up-regulating expression levels of aggrecan, collagen II and sox9 compared to the negative control. Expression of collagen I gene was effectively down-regulated, demonstrating the inhibition of chondrocytes dedifferentiation by LP. Hypertrophy that might lead to chondrocyte ossification was also undetectable in LP groups. Range of 4.69–18.76 µg/ml was recommended dose of LP, among which the most profound response was observed with 9.38 μg/ml. All the evidences revealed that LP may replace the growth factors to be applied in ACI therapy. This study might provide a basis for development of a novel agent in the treatment of articular cartilage defect.

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Acknowledgments

This work has been financially supported by National Science and Technology Pillar Program of China (Grant No. 2012BAI42G00) and Guangxi Scientific Research and Technological Development Foundation (Grant No. Guikehe 14125008-2-14), Guangxi Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars (Grant No. 2014GXNSFGA118006). This work has been supported by Key Laboratory of Regenerative Medicine of Guangxi High School and Collaborative Innovation Center of Guangxi Biological Medicine.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Department of Cell Biology and Genetics, School of Premedical Sciences, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, 530021, China

      Shuyu Zhu & Huayu Wu

    2. Guangxi Key Laboratory of Regenerative Medicine, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China

      Bo Zhou

    3. Key Laboratory of Regenerative Medicine of Guangxi High School, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China

      Bo Zhou

    4. The Medical and Scientific Research Center, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, 530021, China

      Qin Liu & Li Zheng

    5. Research Center for Regenerative Medicine, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, 530021, China

      Qin Liu & Li Zheng

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    1. Shuyu Zhu
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    Correspondence to Li Zheng.

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    Shuyu Zhu, Bo Zhou and Qin Liu have contributed equally to this work.

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    Zhu, S., Zhou, B., Liu, Q. et al. Effect of Longan polysaccharides on proliferation and phenotype maintenance in rabbit articular chondrocytes in vitro. Med Biol Eng Comput 54, 607–617 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11517-015-1352-1

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