Activation of rat nucleus pulposus cells by coculture with whole bone marrow cells collected by the perfusion method.

Cell proliferation and matrix synthesis were compared for rat nucleus pulposus cells cocultured with mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) or fresh whole bone marrow cells (BMCs), harvested by the perfusion or aspiration methods. Nucleus pulposus cells were isolated from tail intervertebral discs of F344/slc rats, and BMCs were obtained from femora. Proteoglycan synthesis, DNA synthesis, and aggrecan mRNA expression were measured. The level of transforming growth factor-beta in supernatants from the culture system was also measured. Cell number, aggrecan mRNA expression, and uptake of [(35)S]-sulfate and [(3)H]-thymidine by nucleus pulposus cells cocultured with fresh whole BMCs all increased significantly compared with nucleus pulposus cells cocultured with MSCs. TGF-beta secreted by nucleus pulposus cells cocultured with fresh whole BMCs also significantly increased when compared with cocultures with MSCs. The perfusion method was superior to the aspiration method for preventing contamination of BMCs with peripheral red blood cells and lymphocytes, which may cause an autoimmune response in the disc. In conclusion, we suggest that fresh whole BMCs harvested by the perfusion method are more effective for increasing the proliferative and matrix synthesis capacity of nucleus pulposus cells.