Enhancement of cartilage protease activity during age and growth hormone-dependent growth.

We wish to report an intriguing relationship between cartilage protease activity and rat growth rate. This was demonstrated by comparing protease activities of rats having different growth rates, i.e., normal rats of different ages, hypophysectomized and growth hormone-treated hypophysectomized rats. Protease activity, assessed by hydrolysis of a gelatin film by cartilage microtome slices, at pH 4.0, was time and temperature dependent. Preincubation of cartilage tissue at various temperatures resulted in an increase of protease activity from 4 degrees C to 37 degrees C and a decrease in activity from 37 degrees C to 100 degrees C. The activity of younger (4 week old) more rapidly growing rats, was greater than that of older, less rapidly growing animals. Hypophysectomy reduced protease activity to approximately one-third normal levels. However, injection of bovine growth hormone into hypophysectomized rats restored the activity. These results suggest that a positive correlation exists between cartilage protease activity and growth rate. Our results support the novel hypothesis that cartilage growth could be mediated, at least in part, via growth hormone-dependent proteolytic activity.