Synergistic and Mutual Antagonistic Regulations of Wnt Inhibitors Play an Important Role in Osteoblast Differentiation of Human Periodontal Ligament Cells

Recent studies have suggested that a balance between Wnt and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) output may be a key factor for regulatory networks involved in bone regeneration. Here we report that Wnt inhibitors coordinately regulate osteoblastic differentiation induced by BMPs of human periodontal ligament cell. Human periodontal ligament (HPDL) cells were stimulated with BMP2/7, Dexamethasone (Dex), or a combination of these reagents. After treatment, we analyzed the phosphorylated Smad1/5 and osteoblast differentiation markers. Specific antagonists such as Dickkopfs Dkk1, Dkk2), secreted Frizzled-related proteins (SFRP1,SFRP2), and sclerostin(SOST) which are believed to play important roles in osteoblast differentiations were also examined by quantitative RT-PCR. BMP2/7 treatment increased ALP activity modestly, and the combination of BMP2/7 with Dex greatly enhanced ALP activity. SOST expression increased sharply following BMP2/7 treatment; however, adding BMP2/7 and Dex drastically reversed this increase in SOST. BMP2/7 and Dex treatment synergistically decreased DKK2 and sFRP2 expression. In contrast, BMP2/7 and Dex had a significant inductive effect on DKK1 and sFRP1 expression. BMP2/7 treatment resulted in Smad1/5 phosphorylation, but adding Dex did not induce p-Smad1/5. However, BMP2/7-induced Smad1/5 phosphorylation was inhibited in the combined treatment group. These opposite trends support the previous reports showing mutual antagonism between DKK1 and DKK2 or sFRP1 and sFRP2. In conclusion, well-balanced Wnt inhibitors may be crucial for bone tissue homeostasis.