Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells Pretreated with Interleukin-1[beta] and Stimulated with Bone Morphogenetic Growth Factor-3 Enhance Chondrogenesis

Low back pain is one of the most common ailments in western countries afflicting more than 80% of the population, and the main cause is considered to be degeneration of intervertebral discs. Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) is a vital inflammatory cytokine found in abundance in degenerated disc environment, whereas bone morphogenetic growth factor-3 (BMP-3) is believed to promote chondrogenesis through transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) pathway. The aim was to study the effects of BMP-3, IL-1β, and combination (pretreatment with IL-1β) on human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) encapsulated in PuraMatrix(TM) hydrogel (Phg) especially in the absence of TGF-β in order to investigate the proliferation and differentiation ability of hMSCs over 28-day period. One hundred microliters of hMSCs' cell suspension was encapsulated between two layers of 100 μL hydrogels forming a sandwich-like structure. The encapsulated hMSCs were cultured in two sets of media, chondrogenic (C) and nonchondrogenic (nC) media, along with addition of BMP-3 (10 ng/mL) and IL-1β (10 ng/mL). To study the combined effects of BMP-3 and IL-1β, the encapsulated hMSCs were first pretreated with relevant media containing IL-1β for 24 h, and then the media was replaced by media containing BMP-3 for the remaining experimental time period. IL-1β pretreatment was carried out in both C and nC media. The samples were collected at day 7, 14, and 28. Proliferation and differentiation of hMSCs into chondrocyte-like cells were observed in all samples. Proteoglycan accumulation was observed in pretreatment samples in C media. The protein and gene expression of Sox-9 and COL2A1, respectively, showed the occurrence of chondrogenesis in all samples. High cell viability, proliferation, and differentiation were achieved in this in vitro model confirming that BMP-3 alone in the absence of TGF-β could drive hMSCs into chondrogenic lineage. Pretreatment with IL-1β followed by BMP-3 stimulation resulted in high proteoglycan accumulation compared to stimulation with growth factors or cytokine alone. This suggests that pretreatment with a pro-inflammatory cytokine before driving them into a chondrogenic lineage might be of importance also in vivo.