Abstract
Mimosine, which is a natural plant amino acid present in the Leucaena genus, is able to induce hypoxia‑inducible factors (HIFs). Previous evidence has indicated that HIF regulates angiogenesis‑osteogenesis coupling in bone metabolism, and it has previously been reported that mimosine inhibits prostaglandin (PG)F2α‑induced osteoprotegerin (OPG) synthesis without affecting interleukin‑6 (IL‑6) production in osteoblast‑like MC3T3‑E1 cells. In addition, PGE1 has been demonstrated to induce OPG synthesis via activation of p38 mitogen‑activated protein (MAP) kinase and stress‑activated protein kinase/c‑Jun N‑terminal kinase (SAPK/JNK) in these cells, and PGE1 stimulates IL‑6 production via the activation of protein kinase A. In the present study, the effects of mimosine on the PGE1‑stimulated synthesis of OPG and IL‑6 were investigated in osteoblast‑like MC3T3‑E1 cells. The concentrations of OPG and IL‑6 were measured using relevant ELISA kits. OPG mRNA was measured by semi‑quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. The phosphorylation of p38 MAP kinase and SAPK/JNK was analyzed by western blotting. Mimosine significantly reduced PGE1‑induced release of OPG and OPG mRNA expression levels without affecting the release of IL‑6. In addition, deferoxamine, which is also a normoxic HIF inducer, significantly inhibited PGE1‑induced OPG release and OPG mRNA expression levels; however, it had little effect on IL‑6 release. Furthermore, mimosine and deferoxamine failed to affect PGE1‑stimulated phosphorylation of p38 MAP kinase or SAPK/JNK. These results strongly suggest that normoxic HIF inducers attenuate PGE1‑stimulated OPG synthesis without affecting IL‑6 production in osteoblasts.