Bone morphogenic proteins (BMPs) are universal regulators of animal development. We report the identification and cloning of the BMP type II receptor (BMPR-II), a missing component of this receptor system in vertebrates. BMPR-II is a transmembrane serine/threonine kinase that binds BMP-2 and BMP-7 in association with multiple type I receptors, including BMPR-IA/Brk1, BMPR-IB, and ActR-I, which is also an activin type I receptor. Cloning of BMPR-II resulted from a strong interaction of its cytoplasmic domain with diverse transforming growth factor beta family type I receptor cytoplasmic domains in a yeast two-hybrid system. In mammalian cells, however, the interaction of BMPR-II is restricted to BMP type I receptors and is ligand dependent. BMPR-II binds BMP-2 and -7 on its own, but binding is enhanced by coexpression of type I BMP receptors. BMP-2 and BMP-7 can induce a transcriptional response when added to cells coexpressing ActR-I and BMPR-II but not to cells expressing either receptor alone. The kinase activity of both receptors is essential for signaling. Thus, despite their ability to bind to type I and II receptors receptors separately, BMPs appear to require the cooperation of these two receptors for optimal binding and for signal transduction. The combinatorial nature of these receptors and their capacity to crosstalk with the activin receptor system may underlie the multifunctional nature of their ligands.

The bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are a group of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta)-related factors whose only receptor identified to date is the product of the daf-4 gene from Caenorhabditis elegans. Mouse embryonic NIH 3T3 fibroblasts display high-affinity 125I-BMP-4 binding sites. Binding assays are not possible with the isoform 125I-BMP-2 unless the positively charged N-terminal sequence is removed to create a modified BMP-2, 125I-DR-BMP-2. Cross-competition experiments reveal that BMP-2 and BMP-4 interact with the same binding sites. Affinity cross-linking assays show that both BMPs interact with cell surface proteins corresponding in size to the type I (57- to 62-kDa) and type II (75- to 82-kDa) receptor components for TGF-beta and activin. Using a PCR approach, we have cloned a cDNA from NIH 3T3 cells which encodes a novel member of the transmembrane serine/threonine kinase family most closely resembling the cloned type I receptors for TGF-beta and activin. Transient expression of this receptor in COS-7 cells leads to an increase in specific 125I-BMP-4 binding and the appearance of a major affinity-labeled product of approximately 64 kDa that can be labeled by either tracer. This receptor has been named BRK-1 in recognition of its ability to bind BMP-2 and BMP-4 and its receptor kinase structure. Although BRK-1 does not require cotransfection of a type II receptor in order to bind ligand in COS cells, complex formation between BRK-1 and the BMP type II receptor DAF-4 can be demonstrated when the two receptors are coexpressed, affinity labeled, and immunoprecipitated with antibodies to either receptor subunit. We conclude that BRK-1 is a putative BMP type I receptor capable of interacting with a known type II receptor for BMPs. Images

The skeleton is a highly dynamic tissue whose structure relies on the balance between bone deposition and resorption. This equilibrium, which depends on osteoblast and osteoclast functions, is controlled by multiple factors that can be modulated post-translationally. Some of the modulators are Mitogen-activated kinases (MAPKs), whose role has been studied in vivo and in vitro. p38-MAPK modifies the transactivation ability of some key transcription factors in chondrocytes, osteoblasts and osteoclasts, which affects their differentiation and function. Several commercially available inhibitors have helped to determine p38 action on these processes. Although it is frequently mentioned in the literature, this chemical approach is not always as accurate as it should be. Conditional knockouts are a useful genetic tool that could unravel the role of p38 in shaping the skeleton. In this review, we will summarize the state of the art on p38 activity during osteoblast differentiation and function, and emphasize the triggers of this MAPK.

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are potent inhibitors of myoblast differentiation and inducers of bone formation both in vivo and in vitro. Expression of Id1, a negative regulator of basic helix-loop-helix transcription factors, is up-regulated by BMPs and contributes to the antimyogenic effects of this family of cytokines. In this report, we have identified a specific BMP-2 immediate early response enhancer in the human Id1gene. Transcriptional activation of the enhancer was increased by overexpression of BMP-responsive Smads, and Smad4 and was completely abrogated in Smad4-deficient cells. Deletion analysis demonstrates that the responsive region is composed of two separate DNA binding elements, a set of overlapping GC boxes, which bind BMP-regulated Smads upon BMP stimulation, and three repeats of CAGAC boxes. Gel shift and oligonucleotide pull-down assays demonstrated that these two types of motifs were capable of binding their corresponding Smads. However, deletion or mutation of either DNA binding element was nonadditive, since disruption of either GC or CAGAC boxes resulted in complete or severe loss of BMP-2 responsiveness. These data suggest the simultaneous requirement of two independent DNA binding elements to allow functional cooperativity of BMP-regulated Smads and Smad4 in BMP-activated gene promoters.

Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) and activin bind to receptor complexes that contain two distantly related transmembrane serine/threonine kinases known as receptor types I and II. The type II receptors determine ligand binding specificity, and each interacts with a distinct repertoire of type I receptors. Here we identify a new type I receptor for activin, ActR-IB, whose kinase domain is nearly identical to that of the recently cloned TGF-beta type I receptor, T beta R-I. ActR-IB has the structural and binding properties of a type I receptor: it binds activin only in the presence of an activin type II receptor and forms a heteromeric noncovalent complex with activin type II receptors. In Mv1Lu lung epithelial cells, ActR-IB and T beta R-I signal a common set of growth-inhibitory and transcriptional responses in association with their corresponding ligands and type II receptors. The transcriptional responses include elevated expression of fibronectin and plasminogen activator inhibitor 1. Although T beta R-I and ActR-IB are nearly identical in their kinase domains (90% amino acid sequence identity), their corresponding type II receptor kinase domains are very different from each other (42% amino acid sequence identity). Therefore, signaling of a specific set of responses by TGF-beta and activin correlates with the presence of similar type I kinases in their complex. Indeed, other TGF-beta and activin type I receptors (TSR-I and ActR-I) whose kinase domains significantly diverge from those of T beta R-I and ActR-IB do not substitute as mediators of these growth-inhibitory and extracellular matrix transcriptional responses. Hence, we conclude that the type I receptor subunits are primary specifiers of signals sent by TGF-beta and activin receptor complexes.