ABSTRACT
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent stem cells that differentiate into a variety of cell types. Low frequency pulsed electromagnetic fields (LFPEMFs) therapy can causes biochemical changes at the cellular level to accelerate tissue repair in mammals. So, we tested the hypothesis that LFPEMFs can promote chondrogenic differentiation of rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (rBMSCs) in vitro. The rBMSCs were isolated by adherence method and the third-generation of the rBMSCs were randomly divided into LFPEMFs groups, chondrocyte-induced group and control group. LFPEMFs groups with complete medium were exposed to 50Hz, 1mT PEMFs for 30 min every day, lasting for 10, 15 and 20 d, respectively. Chondrocyte-induced group were treated with chondrogenic media, while control groups were only cultured with complete medium. The mRNA expressions of type II-collagen (Col II) and aggrecan were determined by Real-time fluorescent quantitation PCR. The protein expression of Col II and aggrecan were detected with toluidine blue stain or immunocytochemical stain, respectively. The result showed that the mRNA and protein expression level of Col-II and aggrecan were significantly higher in the LFPEMFs group or chondrocyte-induced group, compared to the control group. It suggest that LFPEMFs could contribute to rBMSCs to differentiate into chondrogenic differentiation in vitro.