Effect of Copper on the Expression of TGF-β in Incubated Chondrocytes of Newborn Pigs

This experiment was conducted to measure the effect of copper supplementation on TGF-beta gene expression in chondrocytes of newborn pigs. Chondrocytes were cultured in media containing 15% fetal calf serum supplemented with 0, 15.6, 31.2, and 62.5 mu mol/L copper in 90-mm culture plate. Total RNA was isolated from chondrocytes, and TGF-beta cDNA was synthesized, amplified, and sequenced. The expression level of TGF-beta was examined by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. The results showed that the sequence of the cloned TGF-beta gene was 99.4% identical to that in GenBank. The expression of TGF-beta increased in culture media added with final concentration of 15.6, 31.2, and 62.5 mu mol/L copper. In this study, the optimal copper concentration and optimal culture time for the highest level of TGF-beta expression were 31.2 mu mol/L and 48 h, respectively.