Effects of colchicine on osteoblast in rat: an ultrastructural study

The present study was an attempt to investigate the effects of colchicine on the ultrastructure of rat osteoblasts with special reference to the microtubular function in vivo. Rats were killed at intervals of 2, 4, 8, 12 and 24 hours after the colchicine injection (0.1 mg per 100 g of body weight, subcutaneously). At 2 and 4 hours after the injection, the secretory granules and small vesicles accumulated in the Golgi area of the osteoblasts. The dilated spherical cisterna of the rough endoplasmic reticulum and the large vacuoles appeared, being located in the periphery of the cell. Microtubules were rarely found in the cytoplasm. Small masses of microfilaments of 80 to 110 A in diameter were found also in the cytoplasm. According to the special staining for collagen, it was indicated that the contents of the secretory granules might be collagen-like materials. At 8 hours after the injection, the shape of the osteoblasts transformed to a round profile and the autophagic vacuoles increased in the cytoplasm. At 12 and 24 hours after the injection, the osteoblasts seemed to be destroyed by the breakdown of the plasma membrane and by the increase of the autophagic vacuoles. It is suggested that colchicine affects the secretory process of the bone matrix and the cytoskeletal system of the osteoblasts by interfering with the structure and the function of the microtubules and colchicine also interferes with the function of the plasma membrane followed by the destruction of the osteoblasts.