Abstract
Mesenchyme cells dissociated from the limb buds of quail embryos (stages 21-22) were used to study the effects of different types of cell association for various periods on cartilage differentiation. The mesenchyme cells were first incubated for 4-48 h as monolayers, precipitated pellets, or cultures with gyratory shaking or reciprocal shaking. The cells then were dissociated, and their ability to form cartilage colonies in cultures at low cell density was examined. Cells that had been incubated as monolayers or in cultures with reciprocal shaking formed only fibroblastic colonies, whereas cells that had been incubated in cultures with gyratory shaking for 12 h or as pellets for 16 h formed cartilage colonies. With the last two treatments, the number of cartilage colonies increased according to the prior incubation period. Thus, three-dimensional cell association for a certain period may stabi-lize the ability of mesenchyme cells to differentiate into cartilage cells.
