Melatonin reversed tumor necrosis factor ‐alpha‐inhibited osteogenesis of human mesenchymal stem cells by stabilizing SMAD1 protein

This study demonstrated that melatonin rescued TNFα‐inhibited osteogenesis of human mesenchymal stem cells and that the interactions between SMURF1 and SMAD1 mediated the crosstalk between melatonin signaling and TNFα signaling. Additionally, melatonin treatment was found to downregulate TNFα‐induced SMURF1 expression and then decrease SMURF1‐mediated ubiquitination and degradation of SMAD1 protein, leading to steady bone morphogenetic protein‐SMAD1 signaling activity and restoration of TNFα‐impaired osteogenesis. Thus, melatonin has prospects for treating osteoporosis caused by inflammatory factors due to its multifaceted functions on regulation of bone formation, bone resorption, and inflammation. Further studies will focus on unveiling the specific mechanisms by which melatonin downregulates SMURF1 expression and confirming the clinical therapeutic value of melatonin in the prevention and therapy of bone loss associated with inflammation.

Source: Journal of Pineal Research - July 24, 2016 Category: Research Authors: Chengjie Lian, Zizhao Wu, Bo Gao, Yan Peng, Anjing Liang, Caixia Xu, Lei Liu, Xianjian Qiu, Junjun Huang, Hang Zhou, Yifeng Cai, Peiqiang Su, Dongsheng Huang Tags: Original Article Source Type: research