Loss of Proteinpolysaccharides at Sites Where Bone Mineralization Is Initiated

In both ground sections and demineralized frozen sections of the rat tibial cortex, osteoid but not mature bone matrix stained for proteinpolysaccharides with the Alcian Blue and toluidine blue techniques. The loss of proteinpolysaccharide staining occurred precisely at the mineralizing front, which was identified by in vivo lead or procion markers, not only in normal animals but also in animals in which osteoid width was either increasing or decreasing. In vitro, both proteases and saccharidases abolished proteinpolysaccharide staining of osteoid. Critical electrolyte concentration and other procedures indicated that the major acid polysaccharide component in osteoid is chondroitin sulfate. Consistent with these findings, electron microprobe analyses revealed that sulfur concentration was high in osteoid but dropped abruptly as calcium concentration increased at the mineralizing front. The precise synchronization between loss of proteinpolysaccharides and onset of mineralization under various experimental conditions provides strong indirect evidence that the loss of these macromolecules is somehow involved in initiation of mineralization in bone.