Effect of carrageenin and cortisone of the formation of cultivated connective tissue: I. Isolation and characterisation of glycosaminoglycans

Abstract

1. (1) The glycosaminoglycans present in the cotton wick granulation tissue from cortisone-treated rats (200 mg/kg body wt.), non-cortisone-treated rats, and in the granulation tissue from rats implanted with cotton wicks impregnated with carrageenin have been isolated into various fractions by cetylpyridinium bromide procedure followed by DEAE-Sephadex column chromatography. 2. (2) The level of total glycosaminoglycans in the tissue is reduced by 10% after cortisone treatment and is increased by 45% after carrageenin treatment. 3. (3) Hyaluronic acid, heparan sulphate, chondroitin 4-sulphate, chrondroitin 6-sulphate, low sulphated chondroitin sulphate and dermatan sulphate have been identified in these tissues. 4. (4) Hyaluronic acid is the major glycosaminoglycan in this tissue, and chondroitin 4-sulphate the major sulphated glycosaminoglycan. 5. (5) Administration in vivo of a pharmacologically high dose of cortisone reduced the level of sulphated glycosaminoglycans; furthermore the reduction is considerable in the case of chondroitin 4-sulphate. However, it has not affected the levels of glucosamine-containing glycosaminoglycans (hyaluronic acid and heparan sulphate). 6. (6) The level of sulphated glycosaminoglycans is not increased by carrageenin treatment. On the other hand there is a considerable increase in the level acid. 7. (7) These is an increase is the level of chondroitin 6-sulphate and a decrease in the levels of heparan sulphate and dermatan sulphate in the case of carrageenin-induced granulation tissue.