Treatment of myoblastic C2C12 cells with BMP-2 stimulates vitamin D-induced formation of osteoclasts.

The interaction of osteoclast precursors with osteoblasts and/or stromal cells is essential for the formation of mature osteoclasts and the resorption of bone. We found that myoblastic C2C12 cells induced the differentiation of mouse spleen cells into tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase-positive (TRAP-positive) multinucleated cells in the presence of 10(-7) M 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1alpha,25(OH)2D3] and that C2C12 cells that had been treated with bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) dose-dependently stimulated the formation of osteoclasts. The newly developed TRAP-positive multinucleated cells were capable of resorbing mineralized tissues. Treatment of C2C12 cells with BMP-2 for 24 h enhanced the subsequent expression in C2C12 cells of mRNA for the receptor activator of nuclear factor-kappaB ligand (RANKL) in the presence of 1alpha,25(OH)2D3. Since the formation of osteoclasts was inhibited dose-dependently by exogenous OPG, the expression of RANKL in response to BMP-2 appeared to be critical for the formation of osteoclasts. Our findings suggest that BMP-2 might play an important role in the differentiation of cells that support osteoclastogenesis.