Postnatal bone marrow houses mesenchymal progenitor cells that are osteoblast precursors. These cells have established therapeutic potential, but they are difficult to maintain and expand in vitro, presumably because little is known about the mechanisms controlling their fate decisions. To investigate the potential role of Notch signaling in osteoblastogenesis, we used conditional alleles to genetically remove components of the Notch signaling system during skeletal development. We found that disruption of Notch signaling in the limb skeletogenic mesenchyme markedly increased trabecular bone mass in adolescent mice. Notably, mesenchymal progenitors were undetectable in the bone marrow of mice with high bone mass. As a result, these mice developed severe osteopenia as they aged. Moreover, Notch signaling seemed to inhibit osteoblast differentiation through Hes or Hey proteins, which diminished Runx2 transcriptional activity via physical interaction. These results support a model wherein Notch signaling in bone marrow normally acts to maintain a pool of mesenchymal progenitors by suppressing osteoblast differentiation. Thus, mesenchymal progenitors may be expanded in vitro by activating the Notch pathway, whereas bone formation in vivo may be enhanced by transiently suppressing this pathway.

Signals that govern development of the osteoblast lineage are not well understood. Indian hedgehog (Ihh), a member of the hedgehog (Hh) family of proteins, is essential for osteogenesis in the endochondral skeleton during embryogenesis. The canonical pathway of Wnt signaling has been implicated by studies of Lrp5, a co-receptor for Wnt proteins, in postnatal bone mass homeostasis. In the present study we demonstrate that β-catenin, a central player in the canonical Wnt pathway, is indispensable for osteoblast differentiation in the mouse embryo. Moreover, we present evidence that Wnt signaling functions downstream of Ihh in development of the osteoblast lineage. Finally Wnt7b is identified as a potential endogenous ligand regulating osteogenesis. These data support a model that integrates Hh and Wnt signaling in the regulation of osteoblast development.

Canonical Wnt signaling critically regulates cell fate and proliferation in development and disease. Nuclear localization of beta-catenin is indispensable for canonical Wnt signaling; however, the mechanisms governing beta-catenin nuclear localization are not well understood. Here we demonstrate that nuclear accumulation of beta-catenin in response to Wnt requires Rac1 activation. The role of Rac1 depends on phosphorylation of beta-catenin at Ser191 and Ser605, which is mediated by JNK2 kinase. Mutations of these residues significantly affect Wnt-induced beta-catenin nuclear accumulation. Genetic ablation of Rac1 in the mouse embryonic limb bud ectoderm disrupts canonical Wnt signaling and phenocopies deletion of beta-catenin in causing severe truncations of the limb. Finally, Rac1 interacts genetically with beta-catenin and Dkk1 in controlling limb outgrowth. Together these results uncover Rac1 activation and subsequent beta-catenin phosphorylation as a hitherto uncharacterized mechanism controlling canonical Wnt signaling and may provide additional targets for therapeutic intervention of this important pathway.

Sclerostin, the Wnt signaling antagonist encoded by the Sost gene, is secreted by osteocytes and inhibits bone formation by osteoblasts. Mechanical stimulation reduces sclerostin expression, suggesting that osteocytes might coordinate the osteogenic response to mechanical force by locally unleashing Wnt signaling. To investigate whether sclerostin downregulation is a pre-requisite for load-induced bone formation, we conducted experiments in transgenic mice (TG) engineered to maintain high levels of SOST expression during mechanical loading. This was accomplished by introducing a human SOST transgene driven by the 8kb fragment of the DMP1 promoter that also provided osteocyte specificity of the transgene. Right ulnae were subjected to in vivo cyclic axial loading at equivalent strains for 1 min/day at 2Hz; left ulnae served as internal controls. Endogenous murine Sost mRNA expression measured 24h after 1 loading bout was decreased by about 50% in TG and wild type (WT) littermates. In contrast, human SOST, only expressed in TG mice, remained high after loading. Mice were loaded on 3 consecutive days and bone formation was quantified 16 days after initiation of loading. Periosteal bone formation in control ulnae was similar in WT and TG mice. Loading induced the expected strain-dependent increase in bone formation in WT mice, resulting from increases in both mineralizing surface (MS/BS) and mineral apposition rate (MAR). In contrast, load-induced bone formation was reduced by 70–85% in TG mice, due to lower MS/BS and complete inhibition of MAR. Moreover, Wnt target gene expression induced by loading in WT mice was absent in TG mice. Thus, downregulation of Sost/sclerostin in osteocytes is an obligatory step in the mechanotransduction cascade that activates Wnt signaling and directs osteogenesis to where bone is structurally needed.

Wnt signaling regulates a variety of developmental processes in animals. Although the beta-catenin-dependent (canonical) pathway is known to control cell fate, a similar role for noncanonical Wnt signaling has not been established in mammals. Moreover, the intracellular cascades for noncanonical Wnt signaling remain to be elucidated. Here, we delineate a pathway in which Wnt3a signals through the Galpha(q/11) subunits of G proteins to activate phosphatidylinositol signaling and PKCdelta in the murine ST2 cells. Galpha(q/11)-PKCdelta signaling is required for Wnt3a-induced osteoblastogenesis in these cells, and PKCdelta homozygous mutant mice exhibit a deficit in embryonic bone formation. Furthermore, Wnt7b, expressed by osteogenic cells in vivo, induces osteoblast differentiation in vitro via the PKCdelta-mediated pathway; ablation of Wnt7b in skeletal progenitors results in less bone in the mouse embryo. Together, these results reveal a Wnt-dependent osteogenic mechanism, and they provide a potential target pathway for designing therapeutics to promote bone formation.