The Regulation of Bone Metabolism and Disorders by Wnt Signaling

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 20; no. 22; p. 5525
• Main Authors: Maeda, Kazuhiro, Kobayashi, Yasuhiro, Koide, Masanori, Uehara, Shunsuke, Okamoto, Masanori, Ishihara, Akihiro, Kayama, Tomohiro, Saito, Mitsuru, Marumo, Keishi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 06-11-2019; MDPI
• Subjects: Animals; Bone and Bones - metabolism; Bone cancer; Bone diseases; Bone Remodeling; Bone Resorption - metabolism; Bone Resorption - pathology; Humans; Kinases; Leukemia; Metastasis; Monoclonal antibodies; Multiple myeloma; osteoarthritis; osteoblast; osteoclast; osteocyte; Osteogenesis; Osteoporosis; Pancreatic cancer; Phenotype; Review; rheumatoid arthritis; romosozumab; sclerostin; skeletal-related events; Stem cells; Tumors; wnt; Wnt Signaling Pathway; skeletal-related events; romosozumab; osteoarthritis; osteoblast; osteocyte; Wnt; osteoclast; osteoporosis; rheumatoid arthritis; sclerostin
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms20225525

Wnt, a secreted glycoprotein, has an approximate molecular weight of 40 kDa, and it is a cytokine involved in various biological phenomena including ontogeny, morphogenesis, carcinogenesis, and maintenance of stem cells. The Wnt signaling pathway can be classified into two main pathways: canonical and non-canonical. Of these, the canonical Wnt signaling pathway promotes osteogenesis. Sclerostin produced by osteocytes is an inhibitor of this pathway, thereby inhibiting osteogenesis. Recently, osteoporosis treatment using an anti-sclerostin therapy has been introduced. In this review, the basics of Wnt signaling, its role in bone metabolism and its involvement in skeletal disorders have been covered. Furthermore, the clinical significance and future scopes of Wnt signaling in osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and neoplasia are discussed.