The growth of cultured rabbit articular chondrocytes is stimulated by pituitary growth factors but not by purified human growth hormone or ovine prolactin.

Recent reports describing a direct stimulation by GH of bone and cartilage growth led us to compare the in vitro mitogenic effects of highly purified human GH and PRL and two pituitary-derived growth factors in rabbit articular chondrocytes. These preparations were tested for their ability to promote [3H]thymidine incorporation into growth-arrested monolayer chondrocyte cultures and were also assayed in cell growth experiments. The factors tested included 22,000-dalton and 20,000-dalton human GH ovine PRL, glycosylated ovine PRL, bovine pituitary fibroblast growth factor (bpFGF), and a partially purified pituitary growth factor distinct from bpFGF. We found that no significant mitogenic effect was produced by either of the human GH or PRL preparations. Both of the pituitary-derived growth factors were potent mitogens, with bpFGF active at a final medium concentration of 10 pg/ml. These studies support the large body of evidence that GH has no significant direct in vitro effect on chondrocyte growth. The very potent effects of the pituitary-derived growth factors raise the possibility that their presence in GH preparations may be responsible for the in vitro mitogenic effects attributed to these preparations.