THE EFFECTS OF CULTURE ENVIRONMENT ON THE RESPONSE OF HUMAN GINGIVAL FIBROBLASTS TO CYCLOSPORINE-A

IN CONTRAST TO MONOLAYER CELL CULTURE, the use of a 3-dimensional cult ure system creates an environment which is more physiologically compar able to conditions in vivo. This study aimed to investigate the effect s of culture environment on growth and protein biosynthesis by 6 human gingival fibroblast cell lines exposed to cyclesporin A (CsA). Fibrob lasts were grown both in monolayer culture on plastic and embedded wit hin collagen gel. Cyclosporin A was added to cultures at a range of co ncentrations between 10(-5) and 10(-9) g/ml. Under both culture condit ions CsA had little effect on cell growth at low concentrations but at the highest concentration of 10(-5) g/ml, there was a significant inh ibitory effect on growth (P <0.05). Protein production was not signifi cantly affected by CsA in either culture system. Total collagen produc tion appeared to be inhibited at high concentrations of CsA when cells were grown on plastic but remained unaffected when the cells were gro wn in collagen gel. Total protein and collagen production per cell in collagen gel was substantially greater compared with cells grown on pl astic. We conclude that under the conditions of this investigation CsA did not directly stimulate growth or matrix-synthesis by normal human gingival fibroblasts cultured in 3-dimensional collagen gel or as mon olayers on plastic.