Steven C. Ghivizzani

Bone sarcomas are a clinically and molecularly heterogeneous group of malignancies characterized by varying degrees of mesenchymal differentiation. Despite advances in medical and surgical management, survival rates for high-grade tumors have remained static at 50% to 70%. Tumor stem cells have been recently implicated in the pathogenesis of other heterogeneous, highly malignant tumors. We demonstrate here the existence of a small subpopulation of self-renewing bone sarcoma cells that are capable of forming suspended spherical, clonal colonies, also called "sarcospheres," in anchorage-independent, serum-starved conditions. These bone sarcoma cells as well as tissue specimens express activated STAT3 and the marker genes of pluripotent embryonic stem (ES) cells, Oct 3/4 and Nanog. Expression levels of Oct 3/4 and Nanog are greater in sarcospheres than in adherent cultures. A subset of bone sarcoma cells displays several surface markers of mesenchymal stem cells (Stro-1, CD105, and CD44) as well as attributes of mesodermal, ectodermal, and endodermal differentiation. Although previously documented in brain and breast tumors, our results support the extension of the cancer stem cell hypothesis to include tumors of mesenchymal lineage. Furthermore, they suggest the participation of ES cell homeobox proteins in non-germ cell tumorigenesis.

Hyaline articular cartilage, the load-bearing tissue of the joint, has very limited repair and regeneration capacities. The lack of efficient treatment modalities for large chondral defects has motivated attempts to engineer cartilage constructs in vitro by combining cells, scaffold materials and environmental factors, including growth factors, signaling molecules, and physical influences. Despite promising experimental approaches, however, none of the current cartilage repair strategies has generated long lasting hyaline cartilage replacement tissue that meets the functional demands placed upon this tissue in vivo. The reasons for this are diverse and can ultimately result in matrix degradation, differentiation or integration insufficiencies, or loss of the transplanted cells and tissues. This article aims to systematically review the different causes that lead to these impairments, including the lack of appropriate differentiation factors, hypertrophy, senescence, apoptosis, necrosis, inflammation, and mechanical stress. The current conceptual basis of the major biological obstacles for persistent cell-based regeneration of articular cartilage is discussed, as well as future trends to overcome these limitations.

Adenoviral vectors were used to deliver genes encoding a soluble interleukin 1 (IL-1)-type I receptor-IgG fusion protein and/or a soluble type I tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) receptor-IgG fusion protein directly to the knees of rabbits with antigen-induced arthritis. When tested individually, knees receiving the soluble IL-1 receptor had significantly reduced cartilage matrix degradation and white blood cell infiltration into the joint space. Delivery of the soluble TNFalpha receptor was less effective, having only a moderate effect on white blood cell infiltration and no effect on cartilage breakdown. When both soluble receptors were used together, there was a greater inhibition of white blood cell infiltration and cartilage breakdown with a considerable reduction of synovitis. Interestingly, anti-arthritic effects were also seen in contralateral control knees receiving only a marker gene, suggesting that sustained local inhibition of disease activity in one joint may confer an anti-arthritic effect on other joints. These results suggest that local intra-articular gene transfer could be used to treat systemic polyarticular arthritides.

The formation of ectopic bone within skeletal muscle is a widely observed phenomenon. However, the source of the osteoprogenitor cells responsible for ectopic bone formation remains unknown. This study was designed to test for osteogenic differentiation among cells isolated from skeletal muscle tissue. Different subpopulations of cells derived from an adult mouse skeletal muscle were tested for induction of alkaline phosphatase activity after exposure to bone morphogenetic protein-2 in vitro. A responsive subpopulation was identified, transduced with a retrovirus encoding for beta-galactosidase (Rv-lacZ) and an adenoviral construct encoding for one bone morphogenetic protein-2, and injected into the hindlimb of immune compromised (severe combined immunodeficient, or SCID) mice. The injected cells appeared to actively participate in the ectopic bone formation. The existence of lacZ-positive muscle-derived cells colocalized with osteocalcin-producing cells within lacunae of newly formed bone matrix suggests osteoblast and osteocyte differentiation. Although a specific cell was not isolated, these data support the contentions that osteoprogenitor cells reside within skeletal muscle and that muscle may represent a source other than bone marrow for the harvest of these cells.