Image and fractal analysis of osteoblastic cells in viscous media

The aim of the present study was to determine whether osteoblastic morpholo gy was affected by the viscosity of culture media and whether any morpholog ical differences could be readily quantified. A cytochemical stain was used for alkaline phosphatase and a combination of image and fractal analysis, utilising seven morphological parameters to assess the morphology of osteob lasts. Using regression analysis it was determined that as the viscosity of the culture media increased the area of the cells significantly decreased and the fractal dimension of the cell profiles significantly increased. A d iscriminant function analysis was used to examine whether cell populations could be classified according to culturing time or the viscosity of culturi ng media based on the seven morphological parameters. It was determined tha t the cells could be classified up to 93% correct according to the viscosit y of the media they were cultured in and up to 93.5% correct according to t he culturing time. This study demonstrated that viscous media affects the m orphology of osteoblastic cells and that discriminant function analysis can be used to classify these cells based on their morphological parameters. ( C) 1999 Kluwer Academic Publishers.