The culture of oral epithelium

GMP compliant isolation of mucosal epithelial cells and fibroblasts from biopsy samples for clinical tissue engineering

Engineered epithelial cell sheets for clinical replacement of non-functional upper aerodigestive tract mucosa are regulated as medicinal products and should be manufactured to the standards of good manufacturing practice (GMP). The current gold standard for growth of epithelial cells for research utilises growth arrested murine 3T3 J2 feeder layers, which are not available for use as a GMP compliant raw material. Using porcine mucosal tissue, we demonstrate a new method for obtaining and growing non-keratinised squamous epithelial cells and fibroblast cells from a single biopsy, replacing the 3T3 J2 with a growth arrested primary fibroblast feeder layer and using pooled Human Platelet lysate (HPL) as the media serum supplement to replace foetal bovine serum (FBS). The initial isolation of the cells was semi-automated using an Octodissociator and the resultant cell suspension cryopreservation for future use. When compared to the gold standard of 3T3 J2 and FBS containing medium there was no reduction in growth, viability, stem cell population or ability to differentiate to mature epithelial cells. Furthermore, this method was replicated with Human buccal tissue, providing cells of sufficient quality and number to create a tissue engineered sheet.

Ultrastructural study of autologous cultivated conjunctival epithelium

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

This report is one of the first in the literature on the attempted cultivation and clinical application of human conjunctival epithelium. The authors investigated the possibility of restoring severely damaged ocular surface with autologous cultivated conjunctival epithelium.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

The conjunctival cells needed for the experiment were harvested from six patients with oculopalpebral diseases. Confluent epithelial sheets were developed from each biopsy specimen. The new epithelium was then implanted on the patients' or donors' eye surface.

RESULTS

The histologic examination showed a pluristratified squamous non-keratinized epithelium lying on a basement membrane and with a lamina propria of well-vascularized connective tissue. Normal ultrastructural characteristics were evident on electron microscopy.

CONCLUSION

The cultivation of autologous conjunctival cells may be a good option for rapid and safe repair of large single or bilateral conjunctival defects, as an alternative to heterotopic or allogenic grafts.

A rabbit model for sublingual drug delivery: Comparison with human pharmacokinetic studies of propranolol, verapamil and captopril

A rabbit model for investigating sublingual drug absorption was established yielding results consistent with clinical data reported in the literature. Using propranolol as a model compound the effect of formulation and dosing variables was explored as a means to characterize the limiting parameters of this model. In addition, verapamil and captopril were selected as reference compounds to compare this model to sublingual absorption in humans. Rabbits were dosed sublingually and systemic absorption was measured over time. Sublingual absorption of propranolol was dependent on dosing solution pH and volume. Intra-oral spray device did not affect the overall exposure compared to instillation using a syringe. Despite species and dosing regimen differences the relative bioavailabilities of propranolol and verapamil were very similar in rabbits and humans. In contrast, captopril absorption from the sublingual cavity of rabbits was low and did not agree with that observed in man. Here we report a sublingual rabbit model of drug delivery and its potential utility in preclinical development of intra-oral dosage forms.

Cell, tissue and organ culture as in vitro models to study the biology of squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck

In vitro models are currently being used to study head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Several hundred HNSCC cell lines have been established by various investigators and used to study a broad spectrum of questions related to head and neck cancer. The head and neck model with respect to multistage carcinogenesis is now complete. Several techniques exist for the culture of normal epithelial cells from the upper aerodigestive tract (UADT). The biology of these UADT cells (oral cavity, oropharynx, hypopharynx and larynx) is being studied. Successful culture of premalignant lesions (dysplastic mucosa, leukoplakia, erythroplakia) has resulted in establishment of a limited number of premalignant cell lines and cell cultures. HPV infection of normal oral epithelial cells for immortalization (approximately premalignant cells) coupled with transformation with carcinogens (malignant cells) has established an experimental model for progression. Two in vivo models for oral carcinogenesis, the 7,12 dimethylbenz(a)anthracene-induced hamster cheek pouch model and the 4-nitroquinoline-N-oxide rat oral model, have been established in culture. Thus, multistage carcinogenesis models have been established from both human tissues and animal models and include cultures of normal, premalignant and malignant cells. Culture techniques for growing dissociated primary tumor cells for short term experimental analysis are being used. The culture of normal or tumor tissue as organ/explant cultures allows for the maintenance of normal cell-cell and cell-matrix interaction, but limits experimentation since these cultures cannot be propagated. Several three dimensional model systems are being used to obtain this histological complexity but allow for experimentation. The ability to culture normal, premalignant and malignant cells coupled with the use of a variety of culture techniques, should allow for the continued growth and experimentation in head and neck cancer research.

Attenuation of the natural course of herpes simplex virus infection in human oral epithelial cell cultures by smokeless tobacco extracts suggests the possibility of a synergistic mechanism for carcinogenesis

High prevalence of both tobacco use and latent herpes simplex virus type 1 suggests the opportunity for synergism between these agents as cocarcinogens. In this study, postprimary human oral epithelial cell cultures were infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 pretreated with 2% extracts of either loose leaf, moist, or dry snuffs. Cultures were subsequently periodically exposed to the tobacco. Parameters measured included percentage of cultures undergoing active virus production, onset and time course of cytopathic effects, and concentration of virus released into the media over time. Results showed inhibition of both herpes simplex virus-mediated cell lysis and viral replication by tobacco extracts. This is the first time that these phenomena have been demonstrated in normal human oral epithelial cells. The work described here provides evidence to support a hypothesis that herpes simplex virus type 1 and smokeless tobacco may act synergistically in oral carcinogenesis.

The effect on cell phenotype of the mutagenic peptide of herpes simplex virus type-1

The transforming region of the genome of herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1) encodes a peptide that raises the mutation frequency of cells. To find the effect of this peptide on cell phenotype, three types of cells were transfected with a shuttle vector plasmid that expressed the peptide. When immortalised rat fibroblasts were transfected they rapidly became anchorage-independent with high efficiency, but were not tumorigenic in nude mice. When monkey kidney cells were transfected, five clonal cell lines were isolated, of which one became anchorage-independent but was not tumorigenic in nude mice. When human oral keratinocytes were transfected they did not become immortalised. The peptide therefore induced some of the features of transformation in different cell types, but did not induce a malignant phenotype in any cell. This suggests that interaction with co-factors would be necessary for the peptide to contribute to the development of oral cancer.

Porphyromonas gingivalis invades human pocket epithelium in vitro

The present study examined the adhesive and invasive potential of Porphyromonas gingivalis interacting with human pocket epithelium in vitro. Pocket epithelial tissue, obtained during periodontal surgery of patients with advanced periodontal disease, generated a stratified epithelium in culture. P. gingivalis strains W50 and FDC 381 (laboratory strains), OMGS 712, 1439, 1738, 1739 and 1743 (clinical isolates) as well as Escherichia coli strain HB101 (non-adhering control) were tested with respect to epithelial adhesion and invasion. Adhesion was quantitated by scintillation spectrometry after incubation of radiolabeled bacteria with epithelial cells. The invasive ability of P. gingivalis was measured by means of an antibiotic protection assay. The epithelial multilayers were infected with the test and control strains and subsequently incubated with an antibiotic mixture (metronidazole 0.1 mg/ml and gentamicin 0.5 mg/ml). The number of internalized bacteria surviving the antibiotic treatment was assessed after plating lyzed epithelial cells on culture media. All tested P. gingivalis strains adhered to and entered pocket epithelial cells. However, considerable variation in their adhesive and invasive potential was observed. E. coli strain HB101 did not adhere or invade. Transmission electron microscopy revealed that internalization of P. gingivalis was preceded by formation of microvilli and coated pits on the epithelial cell surfaces. Intracellular bacteria were most frequently surrounded by endosomal membranes; however, bacteria devoid of such membranes were also seen. Release of outer membrane vesicles (blebs) by internalized P. gingivalis was observed. These results support and extend previous work from this laboratory which demonstrated invasion of a human oral epithelial cell-line (KB) by P. gingivalis.

In vitro evaluation of dental materials

Biocompatibility has been described as the ability of a material to perform with an appropriate host response in a specific application. Appropriate host response means no (or a tolerable) adverse reaction of a living system to the presence of such a material. An adverse reaction may be due to the toxicity of a dental material. Therefore toxicity may be regarded as one reason for nonbiocompatibility of a dental material. The toxicity of a dental material can be evaluated by in vitro tests, animal experiments and clinical trials. There exists a variety of different in vitro test methods. The most widely used biological systems for toxicity screening of dental materials are cell cultures. Cell cultures for toxicity screening of dental materials are valuable tools for understanding their biological behavior, if the limitations of the methods are taken into consideration, especially concerning the interpretation of the results. Further research should concentrate on better simulations of the in vivo situation in cell cultures. In this review the applications of various cell culture methods to evaluate the cytotoxicity of a wide range of dental materials, e.g. metals, alloys, polymers and cements, are described.

Morphologic and growth effects of tobacco-associated chemical carcinogens and smokeless tobacco extracts on human oral epithelial cells in culture

Epidemiologic studies show an increase in the use of smokeless tobacco but few in vitro studies have directly assessed the potential for smokeless tobacco-induced oral carcinogenesis. Oral keratinocytes were grown to 90% confluence from explants of human labial and gingival mucosa at 34 degrees C, 5% CO2 in defined media. Epithelial monolayers were subsequently subcultured and then treated for 1 hour with aqueous extracts of moist or leaf smokeless tobacco, or with 0.25 to 1.0 ng/ml of three common smokeless tobacco carcinogens: 4-(N-methyl-N-nitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridinyl)-1-butanone; N-nitrosonornicotine; and benzo(a)pyrene. Even though the controls and most treatment groups terminally differentiated, cells exposed to 4-(N-methyl-N-nitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridinyl)-1-butanone, N-nitrosonornicotine, and moist and dry extract continued to divide, maintained a differentiated phenotype for 8 1/2 to 10 weeks in culture, and displayed focal growth and morphologic changes suggestive of early stages in cell transformation.

Suprabasal marker proteins distinguishing keratinizing squamous epithelia: cytokeratin 2 polypeptides of oral masticatory epithelium and epidermis are different

Terminal differentiation of squamous epithelia is usually characterized by the synthesis of a subset of cytokeratins (CKs) in suprabasal cell layers which become major components of the intermediate filament (IF) bundle cytoskeleton of the maturing cells. We have examined the significance, molecular nature and pattern of synthesis of the elusive human CK 2 by analyzing mRNAs from certain stratified epithelia, using in vitro translation, cDNA cloning. Northern blotting and in situ hybridization. We show that genuine polypeptides with the typical gel electrophoretic mobility of CK 2 exist but that the CK 2 present in the masticatory epithelia of hard palate and gingiva (CK 2p) differs from that found in epidermis (CK 2e) by its amino acid sequence and is encoded by a different gene. The two CKs 2 show only limited sequence homology (71% identical amino acid positions in the rod domain), and the oral CK 2p is more closely related to the corneal CK 3 (86%), as is also indicated by the cross-reaction of monoclonal antibody AE5. By in situ hybridization and immunocytochemistry, we further show that both CK 2e and CK 2p are expressed only in suprabasal cell layers of the specific epithelia where they can accumulate to represent major cytoskeletal proteins. We discuss this tissue-type specificity of CK 2 synthesis in otherwise morphologically and biochemically similar epithelia in relation to differences of IF appearance and packing in upper strata between epidermal and masticatory epithelia as well as to tissue formation and differentiation during development.

Growth regulation of serum-free cultures of epithelial cells from normal human buccal mucosa

Human buccal epithelial cells have been reared from explants maintained in supplemented MCDB 153 medium. Primary epithelial outgrowths show typical structural features and uniformly express keratins; subunit analyses demonstrate expression of keratins 5, 6, 14, 16/17, and 19. The cells exhibit up to 6% colony forming efficiency and divide at about 0.8 population doublings per day on fibronectin/collagen-coated dishes at clonal density. Studies of markers of proliferation and differentiation in buccal epithelial cells indicate that epidermal growth factor, cholera toxin, retinoic acid, and pituitary extract each exhibit a distinctive ability to enhance growth and variably affect cell migration and cell surface area. Transforming growth factor beta-1 inhibits growth and increases surface area without affecting migration, involucrin expression, and cross-linked envelope formation. Moreover, exposure of cells to fetal bovine serum, the tumor promoting agent 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate or an elevated Ca2+ concentration (from 0.1 to 1 mM) inhibits growth and induces squamous differentiation as indicated by inhibition of migration, increases in surface area, involucrin expression, or formation of cross-linked envelopes. The results show that epithelial cells can be reproducibly derived from explant cultures of human buccal mucosa specimens and the cells transferred under serum-free conditions. Buccal epithelial cells in culture undergo a pattern of growth and differentiation that mimics parakeratinization in vivo and variably respond to several agents shown to modulate growth of cells that originate from other types of epithelia.

New approaches and concepts in the study of differentiation of oral epithelia

Epithelial structural proteins, the keratins and keratin-associated proteins, are useful as markers of differentiation because their expression is both region-specific and differentiation-specific. In general, basal cells in all stratified oral epithelia express similar keratins, while the suprabasal cells express a specific set of markers indicating commitment to a distinct program of differentiation. Critical factors in the regulation of epithelial protein expression are now under investigation. The promoter regions of keratin genes are being characterized to determine what sequences within the genes are responsible for differential expression. One important extracellular factor that influences epithelial protein expression is retinol (vitamin A), which exerts its effects via a group of nuclear receptor proteins that may also be expressed in a region-specific manner. These molecular biological approaches enhance our understanding of the mechanisms regulating differentiation of oral epithelia and its regional complexity.

Human oral epithelial cell culture. II. Keratin expression in fetal and adult gingival cells

Epithelial cells from human fetal and adult gingiva were cultured in keratinocyte growth medium (KGM), a serum-free medium. The expression of keratin proteins in these cells was evaluated using immunohistochemistry and SDS-PAGE-immunoblot analysis and compared with expression in the tissue. Keratins 5, 6, 14, 16, and 19 were identified in cells cultured from both fetal and adult tissues. K19 was localized in basal cells of fetal oral tissue but was not seen in adult gingiva (except for scattered Merkel cells). K1 and K10 were expressed in tissue, but not in cultured cells. The keratin profiles of cultured epithelial cells from several adult donors were similar and were identical in cultures from primary through Passage 5. K13, a differentiation-specific keratin, was expressed in all suprabasal cells of fetal oral epithelium, but shows only spotty expression in adult gingival tissue. K13 was expressed in cultures of fetal cells, but very weakly or not at all in cultures of adult cells. K13 expression was greater in cultures grown with physiologic calcium concentrations (1.2 mM) than in those grown at 0.15 mM or less. Our findings are consistent with basal-like characters of these cells in 0.15 mM calcium growth conditions. Differentiation of fetal oral cells in culture to the suprabasal basal cell stage in 1.2 mM Ca2+ is shown by the expression of K13.