Changes in the chemical composition of ear cartilage matrix after administration of various steroid hormones. Studies in New Zealand albino rabbits.

CARTILAGE, A SPECIALIZED FORM OF CONNECMTiE TISSUE, iS made of cells and acellular matrix. The cartilage matrix has a complex organization and is composed primarily of sulfated acid polysaccharides (APS) bound to protein known as chondromucoprotein (CMP), or protein-polysaccharide (PPS). Collagen and elastin are also among major components of cartilage matrix. were stripped and the resulting cartilage plates were minced into 5-sq-mm pieces. The weight of wet cartilage was then recorded on a semimicro balance to the fifth decimal point. The cartilage tissue was further homogenized in a Vir-Tis 45 homog- enizer, at 4 C, and 45,000 rpm. Chondromucoprotein. (CMP) was extracted from the homogenate according to the method of Malawista and Schubert.10 The so extracted CMP was calculated in mg/g of wet cartilage. Hexosamine in the extracted CMP was determined according to the Elson-Morgan reaction 11 as modi- fied by Schloss,12 and nitrogen by a semimicro Kjeldahl procedure.13 Both hex-osamnine and nitrogen of the extracted CMP were calculated on a percent basis. From the values of nitrogen and hexosamine in the extracted CMP, the molar ratio of nitrogen to hexosamine was calculated. After all chemical deteminations had been completed, the collected data were classified according to age, sex and treatment of the animal group used and a complete factorial was carried out on a IBM 360/30-64K computer. The computer analysis showed that there was strong interaction between treatment and age of the tested animals and that significant differences existed among treatments. Since, however, there was no significant difference in the values obtained from control and experimental groups in regard to sex, data from animals of both sexes were combined for further statistical evaluation.