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. 2004 Apr 20;101(16):6158-63.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.0401602101. Epub 2004 Apr 8.

The immunomodulatory adapter proteins DAP12 and Fc receptor gamma-chain (FcRgamma) regulate development of functional osteoclasts through the Syk tyrosine kinase

Attila Mócsai  1 , Mary Beth Humphrey, Jessica A G Van Ziffle, Yongmei Hu, Andrew Burghardt, Steven C Spusta, Sharmila Majumdar, Lewis L Lanier, Clifford A Lowell, Mary C Nakamura
Affiliations

The immunomodulatory adapter proteins DAP12 and Fc receptor gamma-chain (FcRgamma) regulate development of functional osteoclasts through the Syk tyrosine kinase

Attila Mócsai et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. .

Abstract

Osteoclasts, the only bone-resorbing cells, are central to the pathogenesis of osteoporosis, yet their development and regulation are incompletely understood. Multiple receptors of the immune system use a common signaling paradigm whereby phosphorylated immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motifs (ITAMs) within receptor-associated adapter proteins recruit the Syk tyrosine kinase. Here we demonstrate that a similar mechanism is required for development of functional osteoclasts. Mice lacking two ITAM-bearing adapters, DAP12 and the Fc receptor gamma-chain (FcRgamma), are severely osteopetrotic. DAP12(-/-)FcRgamma(-/-) bone marrow cells fail to differentiate into multinucleated osteoclasts or resorb bone in vitro and show impaired phosphorylation of the Syk tyrosine kinase. syk(-/-) progenitors are similarly defective in osteoclast development and bone resorption. Intact SH2-domains of Syk, introduced by retroviral transduction, are required for functional reconstitution of syk(-/-) osteoclasts, whereas intact ITAM-domains on DAP12 are required for reconstitution of DAP12(-/-) FcRgamma(-/-) cells. These data indicate that recruitment of Syk to phosphorylated ITAMs is critical for osteoclastogenesis. Although DAP12 appears to be primarily responsible for osteoclast differentiation in cultures directly stimulated with macrophage-colony stimulating factor and receptor activator of NF-kappaB ligand cytokines, DAP12 and FcRgamma have overlapping roles in supporting osteoclast development in osteoblast-osteoclast cocultures, which mirrors their overlapping functions in vivo. These results provide new insight into the biology of osteoclasts and suggest novel therapeutic targets in diseases of bony remodeling.

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Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Osteopetrosis in mice lacking DAP12 and FcRγ.(A) Three-dimensional reconstitution of micro-CT scans of proximal tibia and 3D trabecular (Tb.) quantitative parameters (mean ± SEM) of bone structure. Significant differences from wild-type are shown (*, P < 0.05; **, P < 0.001). (B) Hematoxylineosin staining of decalcified sections of the primary spongiosa of proximal tibias. BV/TV, relative bone volume. TRI-SMI, 3D reconstruction image SMI.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Lack of Syk phosphorylation in DAP12-/-FcRγ-/- osteoclast-like cells. (A) OCLs stained with anti-Syk and phalloidin. (B) Expression of Syk in in vitro OCLs (OC) and macrophages (MΦ) compared with the macrophage marker CD11b and actin by immunoblotting. (C) Precipitation of whole-cell lysates with GST–Syk fusion protein containing the SH2 domains of Syk or DAP12 antiserum probed with anti-phosphotyrosine antibody. Whole-cell lysates show expression of DAP12, FcRγ, and actin. (D) Immunoprecipitation (IP) with anti-Syk followed by phosphotyrosine (PY) immunoblot. (E) Immunoblot of whole-cell lysate for Y519/520 phosphorylated Syk, total Syk, or actin.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
DAP12/FcRγ and Syk are required for in vitro generation of osteoclast-like cells. (A) TRAP-stained OCLs generated in RANKL and 10 (“low”) or 100 ng/ml (“high”) M-CSF. TRAP+ multinucleated cells (MNC = 3 or more nuclei per cell) enumerated as mean ± SEM of 3 wells (2 cm2 per well). (B) RT-PCR analysis of OCLs cultured in RANKL and 10 ng/ml M-CSF. 1, GAPDH; 2, calcitonin receptor; 3, cathepsin K; 4, integrin β3; 5, OSCAR; 6, RANK. DAP12-/-, DAP12-/-FcRγ-/-, and syk-/- groups were statistically different (P < 0.001) from wild type in both conditions.
Fig. 4.
Fig. 4.
DAP12/FcRγ and Syk are required for functional resorption of mineralized matrix. (A) OCLs generated in RANKL and M-CSF (10 or 100 ng/ml) on an artificial calcium phosphate substrate. The percentage of the resorption of substrate (dark areas) was quantified by dark-field microscopy and expressed as the mean ± SEM of three samples. (B) Bone resorption by OCLs on dentine slices with RANKL and 10 ng/ml M-CSF, visualized by toluidine blue staining and light microscopy. Resorption in the DAP12-/-, DAP12-/-FcRγ-/-, and syk-/- groups was statistically different (P < 0.001) from wild type in all conditions.
Fig. 5.
Fig. 5.
SH2 domains of Syk and an intact DAP12 ITAM are required for in vitro osteoclast differentiation and function. TRAP+ MNC (A) and the percent resorption (B) of calcium phosphate substrate by syk-/- precursors infected with retrovirus encoding vector alone, wild-type syk, or a SH2-dead mutant (R194A) of syk at indicated M-CSF concentrations. In both conditions, TRAP+ MNC number and percent resorption in the SykWT groups was statistically different (P < 0.01) from vector or SykSH2-Dead, with no difference between vector and SykSH2-Dead groups (P > 0.05). (C) Anti-Syk blot of whole-cell ligands from retrovirally transduced or wild-type OCLs. TRAP+ MNC (D) and percent resorption (E) from DAP12-/-FcRγ-/- precursors infected with virus-encoding vector alone, wild-type DAP12, or ITAM tyrosine mutants (Y65, Y76, or both) of DAP12 cultured in 10 ng/ml M-CSF. (F) Expression of FLAG epitope on cells retrovirally transduced with FLAG-tagged DAP12 or FLAG-tagged DAP12 mutants.
Fig. 6.
Fig. 6.
Coculture partially restores in vitro osteoclast formation in DAP12-/- cells but not DAP12-/-FcRγ-/- or syk-/- cells. OB from wild-type mice were used to stimulate osteoclast precursors from wild-type, DAP12-/-, FcRγ-/-, DAP12-/-FcRγ-/-, or syk-/- mice. The number of TRAP+ MNC (A) and the percent resorption (B) on calcium phosphate substrate is shown.
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