The biological response to orthopaedic wear debris is central to peri-prosthetic tissue inflammation and osteolysis, through mechanisms that include local inflammatory cytokine production. In particular, interleukin-1 beta (IL-1beta) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha|) are generated in high quantities following monocyte accumulation in periprosthetic inflammatory tissue, and these cytokine combine with other inflammatory mediators to trigger osteolysis. Since the precise mechanisms involved in debris-associated inflammation remain unclear, it is important to understand how wear debris particles initially interact with inflammatory cells. We have previously demonstrated that the severity of the inflammation response is influenced by the size, shape, and quantity of particles accumulated in tissues. The current in vitro and in vivo results indicate that heat-shock protein (Hsp) expression is elevated when monocytes are exposed to wear debris particles. We have also addressed the mechanisms by which heat-shock protein 60 (Hsp60) positively modulates inflammatory cytokines via Toll-like receptor-4 (TLR4) signal transduction pathway on mononuclear cells. Furthermore, down-regulation of TLR4 expression using antisense oligonucleotides targeted to TLR4 mRNA suppressed cytokine production in both exogenous Hsp60 and particles stimulated cultures. Collectively, these data indicate that monocytic Hsp60 is an additional inducible immunoregulatory mediator in response to particle-induced cell stress.

The use of human hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPC) for transplantation requires efficient recovery methods and cryopreservation procedures. The purpose of this study was to determine cryopreservation techniques for fetal human liver (FHL) CD34 + cells. We assessed FHL HPC recovery efficiency after freezing and thawing by viability testing, fluorescence-activated cell sorting analysis, and colony-forming ability under different conditions. We also determined optimal cell freezing concentrations and the effect of rate-controlled freezing on cell recovery. Lastly, cell recovery after varying freezing time periods was examined. Our results indicated that optimal cell recovery occurs when: A) cryopreservation medium consists of either 5% dimethylsulphoxide (DMSO) or 10% DMSO in combination with either 20% fetal bovine serum (FBS) or 70% FBS and when Iscove's modified Dulbecco's medium consists of not more than 10% DMSO; B) a rate-controlled freezing device container is used; C) CD34 + cells are frozen at a concentration of 1 × 10 6 /ml, and D) a thawing temperature of 37ºC is used. These observations indicate that cryopreservation of FHL HPC is possible for up to 18 months in optimal conditions without losing hematopoietic activity.

This work demonstrates that xenotransplanted fetal human brain cells are able to survive in an ischemic lesion in a rodent model. These data might be useful for future neural transplantation studies of treatments for cerebrovascular ischemia in humans.

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