Gene expression profiles of mandible reveal features of both calvarial and ulnar bones in the adult rat.

OBJECTIVES: Limb and mandibular alveolar bone of the mandible are susceptible to disuse osteopenia, whilst skull and mandibular basal bone appear to resist excessive generalised bone loss. We wanted to compare the site-specific transcriptome of anatomically and functionally distinct bones to confirm the composite nature of the mandible at the molecular level. METHODS: Gene expression profiles were obtained for the mandible, ulna, and calvaria of adult male rats using Affymetrix Rat Genome 230 2.0 GeneChips. Ingenuity Pathways Assist generated association maps, and RGD database software identified site-specific pathways. RESULTS: The majority of expressed transcripts (84%) are common to all three sites. The mandible expressed 873 transcripts in common with ulna but not calvaria, and 1014 transcripts in common with calvaria but not ulna. Transcripts in these groups were excluded if they showed significant differential expression (>2-fold) and the remaining mapped genes were filtered for those related to modulation of gene transcription. Analysis of these genes revealed common pathways shared by the mandible and ulna, or mandible and calvaria, which were not shared by the calvaria and ulna. CONCLUSIONS: There were relatively few differences in the expression of genes responsible for the bone formation process per se in different functional skeletal sites. Differential transcription factor expression suggests that it is the regulation of bone formation and not the mechanism of bone formation itself that differs between the skeletal sites. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The mandible has areas both prone to, and resistant to, resorption whilst skull and limb bone differ in their susceptibilities to osteopenia. This report reveals that the mandible shares some genetic pathways in common with calvaria and others in common with ulna. Study of these pathways could identify novel treatment strategies for bone preservation.

Adult rat bones maintain distinct regionalized expression of markers associated with their development.

The incidence of limb bone fracture and subsequent morbidity and mortality due to excessive bone loss is increasing in the progressively ageing populations of both men and women. In contrast to bone loss in the weight-bearing limb, bone mass in the protective skull vault is maintained. One explanation for this could be anatomically diverse bone matrix characteristics generated by heterogeneous osteoblast populations. We have tested the hypothesis that adult bones demonstrate site-specific characteristics, and report differences at the organ, cell and transcriptome levels. Limb bones contain greater amounts of polysulphated glycosaminoglycan stained with Alcian Blue and have significantly higher osteocyte densities than skull bone. Site-specific patterns persist in cultured adult bone-derived cells both phenotypically (proliferation rate, response to estrogen and cell volumes), and at the level of specific gene expression (collagen triple helix repeat containing 1, reelin and ras-like and estrogen-regulated growth inhibitor). Based on genome-wide mRNA expression and cluster analysis, we demonstrate that bones and cultured adult bone-derived cells segregate according to site of derivation. We also find the differential expression of genes associated with embryological development (Skull: Zic, Dlx, Irx, Twist1 and Cart1; Limb: Hox, Shox2, and Tbx genes) in both adult bones and isolated adult bone-derived cells. Together, these site-specific differences support the view that, analogous to different muscle types (cardiac, smooth and skeletal), skull and limb bones represent separate classes of bone. We assign these differences, not to mode of primary ossification, but to the embryological cell lineage; the basis and implications of this division are discussed.