Mitochondrial biogenesis in rabbit articular chondrocytes transferred to culture

The effect of the switch to aerobic growth conditions was examined in rabbit articular chondrocytes transferred to culture. Spectroscopic analysis of the cytochromes of the respiratory chain shows that only cytochrome b is present in chondrocytes from cartilage, cytochromes c, c1, and a.a3 being undetectable as compared with the typical spectrum found in a primary cell culture on day 4. Steady state levels of RNA transcripts of nuclear (cytochrome c) and mitochondrial genes (cytochrome b and cytochrome oxidase subunits II and III) involved in the oxidative metabolism were determined relative to the RNA transcripts of the nuclear gene for glyceraldehyde phosphate dehydrogenase involved in the glycolytic pathway and to mitochondrial ribosomal RNAs. Chondrocytes transferred to culture showed a general increase in the levels of all transcripts, but the effect on mitochondrial transcripts was much greater (x 20) than the effect on nuclear transcripts (x 3-4). These results show the absence of a coordinate regulation of the expression of mitochondrial and nuclear genes coding for components of the respiratory chain. The increase in mitochondrial DNA triggered by culture conditions does not appear to be sufficient to account for the enhanced transcription. Concomitant with these mitochondrial changes, the level of transcripts for the collagen II gene involved in the differentiation function decreases dramatically (3% of the control on day 3).