Bau-Lin Huang

Bmps and Wnts often act antagonistically. Here we report that in mouse digit progenitors, unlike long bone joints, they cooperate to promote chondrogenic over joint (interzone) commitment. Elevated Bmp signaling prevents 5’ Hoxd ^Δ/Δ digit progenitors from forming interzones, causing joint loss. We show that constitutive βCatenin activation (βCatCA) in 5’ Hoxd ^Δ/Δ interdigits restores digit joints indirectly and cell non-autonomously. RNA profiling reveals βCatCA induces secreted Wnt antagonists that restore 5’ Hoxd ^Δ/Δ digit joints by reducing digit-tip Bmp activity. Deleting the βCatCA-induced Wnt antagonist Dkk2 in 5’ Hoxd ^Δ/Δ interdigits abolishes joint rescue by βCatCA. Wnts inhibit Gsk3β kinase, which phosphorylates and destabilizes both βCatenin and Bmp-activated receptors pSmad1/5. In cultured limb buds, Gsk3β antagonists stabilize pSmad1/5, enhancing digit-tip Bmp activity. We propose that Wnt antagonists prevent precocious pSmad1/5 accumulation by stabilizing Gsk3β, favoring joint fate. Excess Bmp-pSmad1/5 activity in 5’ Hoxd ^Δ/Δ digit-tips accelerates chondrogenic commitment, impeding a switch to joint fate. Wnt antagonists maintain mesenchymal plasticity for normal phalanx-joint specification by slowing the pace of chondrogenic commitment.

CYR61/CCN1 is a matricellular protein that resides in the extracellular matrix, but serves regulatory rather than structural roles. CYR61/CCN1 is found in mineralized tissues and has been shown to influence bone healing in vivo and osteogenic differentiation in vitro. In this study we generated Cyr61 bone specific knockout mice to examine the physiological role of CYR61/CCN1 in bone development and maintenance in vivo. Extensive analysis of Cyr61 conditional knockout mice showed a significant decrease in both trabecular and cortical bone mass as compared to WT littermate. Our data suggest that CYR61/CCN1 exerts its effects on mature osteoblast/osteocyte function to modulate bone mass. Specifically, changes were observed in osteocyte/osteoblast expression of RankL VegfA and Sost. The increase in RankL expression was correlated with a significant increase in osteoclast number; decreased VegfA expression was correlated with a significant decrease bone vasculature; increased Sost expression was associated with decreased Wnt signaling, as revealed by decreased Axin2 expression and increased adiposity in the bone marrow. While the decreased number of vascular elements in bone likely contributes to the low bone mass phenotype in Cyr61 conditional knockout mice, this cannot explain the observed increase in osteoclasts and the decrease in Wnt signaling. We conducted in vitro assays using UMR-106 osteosarcoma cells to explore the role CYR61/CCN1 plays in modulating Sost mRNA and protein expression in osteocytes and osteoblasts. Overexpression of CYR61/CCN1 can suppress Sost expression in both control and Cyr61 knockout cells, and blocking Sost with siRNA can rescue Wnt responsiveness in Cyr61 knockout cells in vitro. Overall, our data suggests that CYR61/CCN1 modulates mature osteoblast and osteocyte function to regulate bone mass through both angiogenic effects as well as by modulating Wnt signaling, at least in part through the Wnt antagonist Sost. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

During embryonic development, undifferentiated progenitor cells balance the generation of additional progenitor cells with differentiation. Within the developing limb, cartilage cells differentiate from mesodermal progenitors in an ordered process that results in the specification of the correct number of appropriately sized skeletal elements. The internal pathways by which these cells maintain an undifferentiated state while preserving their capacity to differentiate is unknown. Here, we report that the arginine methyltransferase PRMT5 has a crucial role in maintaining progenitor cells. Mouse embryonic buds lacking PRMT5 have severely truncated bones with wispy digits lacking joints. This novel phenotype is caused by widespread cell death that includes mesodermal progenitor cells that have begun to precociously differentiate into cartilage cells. We propose that PRMT5 maintains progenitor cells through its regulation of Bmp4. Intriguingly, adult and embryonic stem cells also require PRMT5 for maintaining pluripotency, suggesting that similar mechanisms might regulate lineage-restricted progenitor cells during organogenesis.

The number of phalanges and joints are key features of digit ‘identity’ and are central to limb functionality and evolutionary adaptation. Prior chick work indicated that digit phalanges and their associated joints arise in a different manner than the more sparsely jointed long bones, and their identity is regulated by differential signalling from adjacent interdigits. Currently, there is no genetic evidence for this model, and the molecular mechanisms governing digit joint specification remain poorly understood. Using genetic approaches in mouse, here we show that functional 5′Hoxd–Gli3 antagonism acts indirectly, through Bmp signalling from the interdigital mesenchyme, to regulate specification of joint progenitors, which arise in conjunction with phalangeal precursors at the digit tip. Phalanx number, although co-regulated, can be uncoupled from joint specification. We propose that 5′Hoxd genes and Gli3 are part of an interdigital signalling centre that sets net Bmp signalling levels from different interdigits to coordinately regulate phalanx and joint formation.

During limb development, the interdigital mesenchyme has been proposed to play a signaling role instructing morphogenesis of different digit types, as well as undergoing programmed cell death necessary to free digits in animals not adapted for swimming or flying. We have generated a conditional, tamoxifen-dependent Cre line, Bmp2CreER, which drives highly selective recombination restricted to the distal limb mesoderm, largely restricted to the interdigits, and selectively active in digit ligament but not tendon progenitors at later stages. The Bmp2CreER provides a valuable new tool to dissect roles of interdigital mesenchyme and potentially investigate divergence of ligament and tendon lineages.

CCN2/Connective Tissue Growth Factor (CTGF) is a matricellular protein that regulates cell adhesion, migration, and survival. CCN2 is best known for its ability to promote fibrosis by mediating the ability of transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) to induce excess extracellular matrix production. In addition to its role in pathological processes, CCN2 is required for chondrogenesis. CCN2 is also highly expressed during development in endothelial cells, suggesting a role in angiogenesis. The potential role of CCN2 in angiogenesis is unclear, however, as both pro- and anti-angiogenic effects have been reported. Here, through analysis of Ccn2-deficient mice, we show that CCN2 is required for stable association and retention of pericytes by endothelial cells. PDGF signaling and the establishment of the endothelial basement membrane are required for pericytes recruitment and retention. CCN2 induced PDGF-B expression in endothelial cells, and potentiated PDGF-B-mediated Akt signaling in mural (vascular smooth muscle/pericyte) cells. In addition, CCN2 induced the production of endothelial basement membrane components in vitro, and was required for their expression in vivo. Overall, these results highlight CCN2 as an essential mediator of vascular remodeling by regulating endothelial-pericyte interactions. Although most studies of CCN2 function have focused on effects of CCN2 overexpression on the interstitial extracellular matrix, the results presented here show that CCN2 is required for the normal production of vascular basement membranes.