OSTEOGENIC POTENTIAL OF CULTURED MARROW STROMAL STEM CELLS ON THE SURFACE OF ZINC-CONTAINING BIOCERAMICS
We prepared zinc-containing TCP/HAp ceramics (Zn-TCP/HAp) in the shape of disk, and examined the effect of zinc on the osteogenic differentiation of cultured marrow cells on the surface of Zn TCP/HAp. Fresh marrow cells were obtained from the femora of Fischer rats and cultured in a medium containing 15% fetal bovine serum to reach confluent. After trypsinization, the cells were seeded at 20×103 cells/16 mm ϕ on Falcon tissue wells with the ceramic disk for subculture. Just before the cell seeding, three different disks (TCP/HAp containing 0, 0.126, or 0.316 wt% Zn) were placed in the wells. After 2 weeks of subculture in the presence of β-glycerophosphate, vitamin C phosphate, and dexamethasone, the cells were stained for alkaline phosphatase (ALP). The ALP positive area on the Zn-TCP/HAp disk was expanded with an increase in Zn content, as covering almost the entire surface of the Zn-TCP/HAp disk of 0.316 Zn wt%. The results indicate that the Zn doped TCP/HAp ceramics stimulate osteoblastic differentiation in cultured marrow stromal cells.
