PPAR γ insufficiency enhances osteogenesis through osteoblast formation from bone marrow progenitors

Based on the fact that aging is associated with a reciprocal decrease of osteogenesis and an increase of adipogenesis in bone marrow and that osteoblasts and adipocytes share a common progenitor, this study investigated the role of PPARγ, a key regulator of adipocyte differentiation, in bone metabolism. Homozygous PPARγ-deficient ES cells failed to differentiate into adipocytes, but spontaneously differentiated into osteoblasts, and these were restored by reintroduction of the PPARγ gene. Heterozygous PPARγ-deficient mice exhibited high bone mass with increased osteoblastogenesis, but normal osteoblast and osteoclast functions, and this effect was not mediated by insulin or leptin. The osteogenic effect of…

• OM
  Ono Medical Research Foundation