We have examined the in vitro stage-related chondrogenic potential of human mandibular and limb bud mesenchyme cells using micromass culture, Our results indicate that limb bud mesenchyme cells as early as stage 16 by Carnegie system (37 days), well before the initiation of in vivo chondrogenesis, have chondrogenic potential which is expressed in micromass culture, These results are correlated with stage-related chondrogenic potential of human limb bud in vivo as a result of Alcian blue staining. The proliferation of chondrogenic cells increased in the first 3 days after culture and then decreased. These results were correlated with the cell cycle analysis of which the number of G_°/G_¹ phase increased markedly after 3 days of culture, while the percentage of cells in S phase was decreased, On the other hand, it was rarely differentiated in the mandible. We examined the effects of two PKC modulators such as phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), a potent activator of PKC, and staurosporine (STSN), an inhibitor of PKC. PMA inhibited the chondrogenesis, whereas STSN promoted the chondrogenesis in a dose dependent manner. In addition, PMA exerted no inhibitory effect when the cells were pretreated for 24 h with STSN, implying that the chondrogenic events might be settled at an early step in vitro and PKC may act as a negative modulator, Collectively, these results demonstrate, for the first time, the stage-related chondrogenic potential of human mandibular and limb bud mesenchyme cells and the role of PKC during chondrogenesis in vitro & in vivo.