Sulfated proteoglycan accumulation during development of the embryonic chick limb bud studied by electron microscopic...

Cartilage cells are characterized by a high concentration of extracellular sulfated proteoglycan. Electron microscopic autoradiography was used to compare the incorporation of sulfate into proteoglycan by limb-bud chondrogenic and myogenic cells. From stage 19 to stage 21 there was no significant difference between the cartilage- and muscle-forming regions in the number of silver grains over either the extracellular space or the intracellular space. From stage 22 to 25 the number of extracellular silver grains was significantly greater in the chondrogenic region than in the myogenic region, but the number of intracellular silver grains was the same. Since most of the silver grains were intracellular, no significant difference in the total number of grains was found between the two tissues. Stage-26 and -27 embryos showed a significantly greater number of silver grains over both the cells and the extracellular space in the cartilage region than in the muscle region. Thus, the first step of cartilage differentiation involves a decrease in the extracellular deposition of sulfated proteoglycan in the myogenic region rather than an increase in deposition in the chondrogenic region between stage 22 and 25. After stage 25 there is an increase in sulfated proteoglycan synthesis in the chondrogenic region to the myogenic region.