Articular cartilage preservation and storage

Abstract

Articular cartilage slice explants were stored under various conditions, including freezing-thawing at various rates by using dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as a cryoprotective agent, incubating in standard tissue culture medium (MEM Eagle:NCTC 135:15% fetal calf serum) in 5% CO₂ and air at 4°, 21°, and 37°C, and incubating in standard tissue culture medium containing 200 μg/ml α-tocopherol (vitamin E) at 37°C after first ascertaining a dose-response curve of vitamin E. Results indicated that articular cartilage slice explants did not survive freezing or storage at 4° and 21°C as measured by ³⁵S uptake. When stored at 37°C in standard tissue culture in 5% CO₂ and air, the slice explants remained viable for up to 60 days. The addition of α-tocopherol to the medium resulted in significantly less release of previously incorporated ³⁵S in stored cartilage slices and significantly less reduction of the amount of hexosamine present in the stored explants. α-Tocopherol in the medium also preserved safranin O staining. Thus, the application of tissue culture techniques to the storage of articular cartilage made it possible to preserve cartilage slice explants in a viable, biochemically “normal” state.