Name: Isolation of Synovial Fibroblasts
Uploaded: 2023-02-24T13:30:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Isolation of Synovial Fibroblasts at JoVE.com

isolation of synovial fibroblasts

Unveiling Inflammatory Arthritis&#58; Exploring Functions of Synovial Cells

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease characterized by hyperplasia of the synovium, leading to joint destruction1,2. Tissue-resident macrophages and fibroblasts are present in healthy synovium to maintain joint homeostasis. In RA patients, synovial fibroblasts (SFs) proliferate, and immune cells, including monocytes, infiltrate into the synovium and joint fluid, processes associated with inflammation1,3,4. Synovial macrophages (SMs), which include resident macrophages and peripheral blood monocyte-derived macrophages, and SFs are aberrantly activated and have important roles in RA pathogenesis. Recent studies have suggested that cell-cell interactions between SMs and SFs contributes to both the exacerbation and remission of RA5,6. 
To understand RA pathogenesis, several rodent models of inflammatory arthritis have been used, including K/BxN serum transfer arthritis, collagen-induced arthritis, and collagen antibody-induced arthritis. Cell-based assays are generally required to clarify molecular functions in arthritis. Therefore, primary cells from animal models of arthritis have been isolated. The method to isolate SFs from murine arthritis tissue is well established, and these cells have contributed to the elucidation of molecular mechanisms in arthritis pathogenesis7,8. On the other hand, bone marrow-derived macrophages, blood monocyte-derived macrophages, and macrophage cell lines have often been used as macrophage resources for arthritis studies9,10. Since macrophages can acquire functions associated with their microenvironment, general sources of macrophages may lack responses specific to arthritis tissue. In addition, it is difficult to obtain enough synovial cells by sorting, as murine synovium is a very small tissue even in arthritis models. The lack of usage of synovial macrophages for in vitro studies has been a limitation in arthritis studies. The establishment of a protocol to isolate and expand synovial macrophages would be an advantage for the elucidation of pathological mechanisms in RA.
In the previous method to isolate SFs, SMs were discarded7. Besides that, a method to isolate and expand resident macrophages from some organs was reported11. Therefore, existing protocols were modified in combination. The modification aims to achieve the primary culture of both SMs and SFs with high purity. The overall goal of this method is to isolate and expand both SMs and SFs from murine arthritis tissue.

Author Spotlight: Isolation and Culture of Primary Synovial Macrophages and Fibroblasts from Murine Arthritis Tissue  

Isolation and Culture of Primary Synovial Macrophages and Fibroblasts from Murine Arthritis Tissue

Cell-based assays are required to clarify molecular functions. In arthritis studies, the method to isolate primary cells is well established in synovial fibroblasts, but not in synovial macrophages. Therefore, we developed a protocol to isolate and expand both synovial macrophages and synovial fibroblasts from arthritis models.Primary synovial fibroblasts from murine arthritis tissue have contributed to the elucidation of molecular mechanisms in arthritis pathogenesis. On the other hand, bone marrow-derived macrophages, blood monocyte-derived macrophages, and macrophage cell lines have often been used as macrophage resources for arthritis studies. Since macrophages can acquire functions associated with their microenvironment, general sources of macrophages may lack responses specific to arthritis tissue.In addition, it is difficult to obtain enough synovial cells by sorting, as murine synovium is a very small tissue even in arthritis models. In the previous method to isolate synovial fibroblasts, synovial macrophages were discarded. Besides that, a method to isolate and expand resident macrophages from some organs was reported.Therefore, existing protocols were modified in combination to isolate and expand both synovial macrophages and synovial fibroblasts from murine arthritis tissue. This method can isolate both macrophages and fibroblasts from inflammatory synovium with high purity, and it is simple and reproducible. This method allows the expansion of synovial macrophages under co-culture with synovial fibroblasts.Also, the method provides an advantage, in that synovial fibroblasts can be used with fewer passages. The established protocol would be an advantage for elucidation of pathological mechanisms in rheumatoid arthritis.

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Isolation of Synovial Fibroblasts at JoVE.com

Isolation of Synovial Fibroblasts  

Use the cell suspensions obtained after digestion of mouse knee joints, and seed the suspension on the collagen-coated dish. Incubate the dish for one hour at 37 degrees Celsius in a humidified atmosphere with 5%carbon dioxide. After incubation, collect non-adherent cells using a pipette.Wash the collagen coated dish with culture medium, and collect the medium. Then, add fresh medium to the dish to culture the adherent cells that exhibit a fibroblastoid morphology. Treat the cells with 0.05%trypsin in Hank's balanced salt solution, and passage the sub confluent cells.If highly pure fibroblast-like cells are required, perform repeated passaging. Ensure to use cells with less than five passages. Fibroblast-like cells were isolated from inflammatory arthritis tissue, induced in seven to eight weeks old female C57BL/6 mice.The purity of the isolated cells was assessed by RTQPCR mRNA expression of synovial fibroblast markers, such as Vcam1, Cdh11, Col6a1, and Csf1 in the isolated cells suggested that the fibroblast-rich fractions were isolated from synovitis tissue.

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JoVE Journal

Biology

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that leads to chronic inflammation of joints. Synovial macrophages and synovial fibroblasts have central ...