Proteoglycan from salmon nasal cartridge promotes in vitro wound healing of fibroblast monolayers via the CD44 receptor

Proteoglycans (PGs) are involved in various cellular functions including cell growth, adhesion, and differentiation; however, their physiological roles are not fully understood. In this study, we examined the effect of PG purified from salmon nasal cartilage (SNC-PG) on wound closure using tissue-cultured cell monolayers, an in vitro wound-healing assay. The results indicated that SNC-PG significantly promoted wound closure in NIH/3T3 cell monolayers by stimulating both cell proliferation and cell migration. SNC-PG was effective in concentrations from 0.1 to 10 μg/ml, but showed much less effect at higher concentrations (100-1000 μg/ml). The effect of SNC-PG was abolished by chondroitinase ABC, indicating that chondroitin sulfates (CSs), a major component of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) in SNC-PG, are crucial for the SNC-PG effect. Furthermore, chondroitin 6-sulfate (C-6-S), a major CS of SNC-PG GAGs, could partially reproduce the SNC-PG effect and partially inhibit the binding of SNC-PG to cells, suggesting that SNC-PG exerts its effect through an interaction between the GAGs in SNC-PG and the cell surface. Neutralization by anti-CD44 antibodies or CD44 knockdown abolished SNC-PG binding to the cells and the SNC-PG effect on wound closure. These results suggest that interactions between CS-rich GAG-chains of SNC-PG and CD44 on the cell surface are responsible for the SNC-PG effect on wound closure.