title: Serosal mast cells maintain their viability and promote the metabolism of cartilage proteoglycans when cocultured with chondrocytes.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the consequences of mast cell (MC)-chondrocyte interactions.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cocultured cells were analyzed histochemically, morphologically, biochemically, and functionally.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Cocultured MC adhered to the chondrocytes and remained viable. Chondrocytes cocultured with nonactivated MC produced more proteoglycans than did chondrocytes cultured alone, and these proteoglycans possessed an intact hyaluronic acid-binding region. In contrast, most of the proteoglycans produced by chondrocytes cocultured with activated MC were degraded.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These studies indicate that a complex interaction occurs in which the nonactivated MC stimulates biosynthesis and the activated MC degrades cartilage proteoglycans.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.
authors.forename: R L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Stevens
authors.forename: L L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Somerville
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sewell
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Swafford
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Caulfield
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Levi-Schaffer
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Hubbard
authors.forename: E T
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: Dayton
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002358:Cartilage, Articular / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D002470:Cell Survival; D002478:Cells, Cultured / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002813:Chondrosarcoma / Q000473:pathology; D008407:Mast Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D011509:Proteoglycans / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013462:Sulfur Radioisotopes; D013997:Time Factors; D003189:p-Methoxy-N-methylphenethylamine / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D011509:Proteoglycans; D013462:Sulfur Radioisotopes; D003189:p-Methoxy-N-methylphenethylamine