[Differentiation of cartilage stem cells and their clinical applications].
In the embryonic development of skeletal elements, cartilage appears to form through the cellular condensation at a particular region within mesenchymal tissues. During this process, cartilage stem cells (or chondroprogenitor cells) pass through several distinct cellular stages, which are regulated by a variety of growth and differentiation factors. In contrast to embryos, chondrogenesis rarely occurs in vivo after birth, except in the process of fracture healing or, to a limited extent, repair of articular cartilage. Full-thickness defects that penetrate articular cartilage are filled with fibrous tissue, fibrocartilage, or rarely with hyaline cartilage. Here we discuss ongoing attempts to induce chondrogenesis for the future therapeutic applications.
Shukunami
Chisa
C
Department of Molecular Interaction and Tissue Engineering, Institute for Frontier Medical Sciences, Kyoto University.
Hiraki
Yuji
Y