Abstract

Use  of  stem  cells  for  treating  degenerative  diseases  like  osteoarthritis  has  been  gaining  popularity.  Glucosamine  Sulphate  is  a  nutritional  supplement  used  for  relieving inflammation  during  Osteoarthritis.  Aloe  vera  juice  is  a  widely  consumed  drink  used in  traditional  practices  to  help  reduce  inflammation.  In  this  experiment,  the  effect  of Glucosamine Sulphate and Aloe vera on 2D and 3D proliferation of MSC cells was studied. Initial  study  to  determine  a  suitable  matrix  for  growing  MSC  cells  was  performed  by  growing the cells on 5mg/ml and 10mg/ml collagen and fibronectin coated wells for seven days. Cells adhered the least on fibronectin 10ug/ml and cells proliferated the highest on fibronectin at 10ug/ml, thus establishing fibronectin 10ug/ml as the matrix for the study. The effect of Glucosamine Sulphate on 2D proliferation of MSC cells growing on 10ug/ml fibronectin matrix was studied by exposing the cells to 0mg/ml, 0.1mg/ml, 0.5mg/ml and 1 mg/ml of Glucosamine Sulphate for seven days. The cells adhered the least on 0.5mg/ml and proliferated the highest on 0.5mg/ml as well (p<0.05). The effect of Aloe vera on MSC cells grown on fibronectin at 10ug/ml was studied by using concentrations of 0%, 2%, 5% and 10% Aloe vera juice for seven days. It was found that cell proliferation radically decreased in all conditions after Day 4 and the least proliferation was observed at 10%. 3D proliferation of MSC cells in a fibrin construct was studied with 0.1 mg/ml of Glucosamine Sulphate and 2% and 5% Aloe vera juice. It was observed that 5% Aloe vera juice allowed highest proliferation of cells, followed by 0.1 mg/ml Glucosamine Sulphate and 2% Aloe vera. This indicated that further analysis with 2% and 5% Aloe vera along with 0.1mg/ml as threshold could help identify an optimum dose range for uptake of Glucosamine Sulphate with Aloe vera juice to enhance relief from inflammation during osteoarthritis.

Keywords

glucosamine sulphate, aloe vera, mouse mesenchymal stem cells, anti-inflammatory