title: Regeneration of bone- and tendon/ligament-like tissues induced by gene transfer of bone morphogenetic protein-12 in a rat bone defect.
abstract: Members of the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) family have diverse physiological roles. For instance, BMP-2 stimulates osteogenesis, while BMP-12 induces the formation of tendon/ligament-like tissues. Here, we designed a study to determine whether BMP-12 has bone and/or cartilage regeneration abilities similar to those of BMP-2. We implanted plasmid vectors encoding either BMP-2 or BMP-12 in rats with femur defects, and monitored the bone healing process for 8-weeks. The BMP-12 transgene induced prominent fibrogenesis by 2 weeks, with bone substitution occurring by 8 weeks. BMP-2, however, was associated predominantly with osteogenesis throughout the 8 week period. Thus, we conclude that BMP-12 does not function similarly to BMP-2 during bone healing. Further work is needed to better understand the mechanisms by which it stimulates bony growths to replace the connective tissues formed during the first stages of bone healing.
authors.affiliation: Oral Implantology and Regenerative Dental Medicine, Department of Masticatory Function Rehabilitation, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, 1-5-45 Yushima, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8549, Japan.
authors.forename: Shinji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kuroda
authors.forename: Nobuhiro
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Goto
authors.forename: Michiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Kazutaka
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kaneda
authors.forename: Keiichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ohya
authors.forename: Hitoyata
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shimokawa
authors.forename: Shohei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kasugai