PNNL

Abstract

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) is a platelet-derived bioactive lipid that is postulated to regulate wound healing. LPA activates G protein-coupled receptors to induce Ca2+ signaling in MC3T3-E1 pre-osteoblasts, and is a potent chemotactic stimulus for these cells. Since bone fracture healing requires the migration of osteoblast progenitors, we postulate that LPA is among the factors that stimulate bone repair. UMR 106-01 cells, which express a more mature osteoblastic phenotype than MC3T3-E1 cells, did not migrate in response to LPA, although they express LPA receptors and exhibit LPA-induced Ca2+ signals. This suggests that LPA differentially induces pre-osteoblast chemotaxis, consistent with our hypothesis that LPA stimulates the motility of osteoblast progenitors during bone healing. LPA-stimulated MC3T3-E1 cells exhibit striking changes in morphology and F-actin architecture, and phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI3K) is required for motility-associated cytoskeletal rearrangements in many cell types. We found a dose-dependent reduction in LPA-induced osteoblast migration when cells also were treated with the PI3K inhibitor, LY294002. Treatment of many cell types with LPA is associated with an autocrine/paracrine transactivation of the EGF receptor (EGFR) via shedding of surface-tethered EGFR ligands, a phenomenon often required for LPA-induced chemotaxis. MC3T3-E1 cells express multiple EGFR ligands (epigen, epiregulin, HB-EGF and amphiregulin) and migrated in response to EGF. However, while EGF-stimulated motility in MC3T3-E1 cells was blocked by an EGFR inhibitor, there was no significant effect on LPA-induced chemotaxis. Activation of MAP kinases is a hallmark of EGFR-mediated signaling, and EGF treatment of MC3T3-E1 cells led to a strong stimulation of ERK1/2 kinase. In contrast, LPA induced only a minor elevation in ERK activity. Thus, it is likely that the increase in ERK activity by LPA is related to cell proliferation associated with lipid treatment. We conclude that LPA-induced MC3T3-E1 cell chemotaxis requires PI3K-associated cytoskeletal changes, but not transactivation of the EGF receptor.