Modification of gene expression induced in human osteogenic and osteosarcoma cells by culture on a biphasic calcium phosphate bone substitute

Bone hybrids made of bioceramics seeded with mesenchymal or osteoblastic cells are very promising alternatives to autologous bone graft. Along this line, the development of in vitro models, dedicated to analyze the influence of these biomaterials on osteogenic cells, will help to improve the performance of these bone substitutes. In the present work we analyzed the effects of a macroporous biphasic calcium phosphate ceramic (BCP, Triosite) on three different human osteosarcoma cell lines and on human primary osteogenic cells and compared this culture substratum to traditional culture on plastic. We showed that all these osteoblastic cells adhere and proliferate on the trabecular BCP blocks, with a different spatial organization for osteosarcoma cells compared to normal osteogenic cells. We also demonstrated that osteoblastic marker genes such as Cbfa1, type I collagen, osteonectin, osteopontin, and osteocalcin were expressed at similar levels by these cells cultured on either substratum, suggesting that adhesion to BCP does maintain the osteoblastic phenotype of these cells. Next, we provided the first evidence of differences of cytokine expression profiles revealed on this Ca-P ceramic as compared to expression in classical culture. These modifications affected the expression of cytokines such as TGF-β1, G-CSF, and IL-3 and were quantitatively different between osteosarcoma cells and normal osteogenic cells. Given the role of these cytokines in bone biology and in hematopoiesis, these results obtained in vitro suggest that the BCP ceramic studied here could stimulate osteogenesis in vivo by activating cellular processes during bone formation and healing. This study highlights the notion that the nature of the culture substratum must be taken into account when studying bone cell biology in vitro. Owing to the nature and spatial organization of the BCP, our hypothesis is that culture on BCP is closer to the physiological situation than culture on plastic.