Clinical and demographic prognostic indicators for human disc cell proliferation in vitro - Pilot study

Study Design. Human anulus cells were cultured under control and experiment al conditions to study associations between proliferation and clinical-demo graphic features of subjects from which cells were obtained. Statistical mu ltiple regression analyses were applied to develop mathematic models relati ng proliferation to age, gender, Thompson score (denoting stage of disc deg eneration), and status (control donor [postmortem]; surgical patient). Objectives. To identify the effect of donor characteristics on proliferativ e capacities of human disc cells. Summary of Background Data. As therapeutic options for disc degeneration in crease, novel biologic options are important future considerations. Little is known about the influence of clinical-demographic features on cell proli feration. Methods. Anulus cells were studied in two designs: 1) Cells from 12 individ uals were grown in monolayer with 50 ng/mL interleukin growth factor-1 (IGF -1), 100 ng/mL insulin, or control conditions. 2) Cells from nine individua ls were grown in three-dimensional culture with 10 ng/mL IGF-I or control c onditions. Cell proliferation data and data on age, gender, Thompson score, and status were collected. Standard statistical analyses were used to deve lop correlation models. Results. Data from monolayer experiments produced significant models fittin g proliferation in the presence of low serum, 50 ng/mL IGF-I, or insulin, w ith age, gender, Thompson score, and status (respective R-2: 0.827, 0.680, 0.850). Three-dimensional cultures exposed to 10 ng/mL lGF-I resulted in pr oliferation that correlated in a significant negative manner with Thompson score (r = -0.798). Conclusions. Clinical-demographic prognostic indicators may help predict le vels of proliferation. Greater age, greater disc degeneration, female gende r, and surgical derivation had deleterious effects on proliferation potenti al in this model.