A number of cell kinetic techniques using labelled thymidine and autoradiography have been applied to study growth cartilage in the rat tibia during ageing. No change in the duration of the synthesis phase was found from 4 to 13 weeks of age but there was a reduction in cell proliferation rate during this period. Measurements of labelling index, proliferation zone size and height of hypertrophic cells were used to calculate the growth rate of the bone from 7 days to 1 year. The results agreed well with radiographic measurements of bone growth.
Cell kinetic parameters for the proximal growth plate of the tibia have been measured in young rats. Analysis of a pulse labelled mitosis study gave values of 55 ± 40 hr for the cycle time and 6.5 ± 0.3 hr for the synthesis time in 6‐week‐old rats. The results of a simulated continuous labelling experiment agreed with this data and provided further information on the size and proliferation rate of the stem cell zone. Diurnal variations in mitotic index and labelling index in the tissue have been investigated.
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