Effects of donor age on osteogenic cells of rat bone marrow in vitro

The effect of donor age on the production of bone-like tissue and expression of cellular alkaline phosphatase was examined in cultures of cells obtained from rat bone marrow. Stromal cells were obtained from the bone marrow of young (5-6 weeks) and old (18 months) rats and cultured in vitro. After 28 days in first subculture, the following were quantified: (1) the total number of mineralised nodules and the size distribution of nodules and (2) the density of osteoblasts and osteocytes associated with nodules in histological sections. The doubling times of the cultures and the numbers of cells in cultures which expressed alkaline phosphatase activity were determined in separate experiments. Cells from young cultures produced three times more bone-like nodules than old cultures, although no differences were seen in the size distribution of nodules, or on osteoblast and osteocyte density. Doubling times for both groups were similar. The numbers of alkaline phosphatase (AP) positive cells was reduced by half in old cultures. These data show that this model may be useful for the study of the mechanisms of ageing on osteogenesis, and demonstrate a reduced osteogenic capacity in old cultures. The results suggest that this effect may be due to a reduction in the generation of cells of osteoblast lineage during ageing.