Collagenase Activity and Morphological and Chemical Bone Resorption Induced by Prostaglandin E 2 in Tissue Culture

Abstract

Summary

The isolation of collagenase present in serum-containing medium harvested from bone cultures was effected by heparin-Sepharose affinity chromatography. Almost all of the bone tissue collagenase released into the medium was of the latent, inactive type, which could be activated in vitro with trypsin. Over the course of the experiment a 20-fold greater amount of collagenase was released into the medium by the resorbing cultures stimulated with prostaglandin E₂ as compared to the control cultures. A significant increase in calcium released into the medium correlated in time with rapid bone resorption as measured microscopically. The increase in collagenase activity did not demonstrate the same precise time course.