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. 2021:8:53-63.
doi: 10.20517/2347-8659.2020.34. Epub 2021 Mar 21.

Bone morphogenic protein signaling in spinal cord injury

Nadia Al-Sammarraie  1 , Swapan K Ray  1
Affiliations

Bone morphogenic protein signaling in spinal cord injury

Nadia Al-Sammarraie et al. Neuroimmunol Neuroinflamm. 2021.

Abstract

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a debilitating injury that results from traumatic or non-traumatic insults to the spinal cord, causing significant impairment of the patient's activity and quality of life. Bone morphogenic proteins (BMPs) are a group of polyfunctional cytokines belonging to the transforming growth factor beta superfamily that regulates a wide variety of cellular functions in healthy and disease states. Recent studies suggest that dysregulation of BMP signaling is involved in neuronal demyelination and death after traumatic SCI. The focus of this article is to describe our current understanding of the role of BMP signaling in the regulation of cell fate, proliferation, apoptosis, autophagy, and inflammation in traumatic SCI. First, we will describe the expression of BMPs and pattern of BMP signaling before and after traumatic SCI in rodent models and in vitro. Next, we will discuss the role of BMP in the regulation of neuronal and glial cell differentiation, survival, functional recovery from traumatic SCI, and the gap in knowledge in this area that requires further investigation to improve SCI prognosis.

Keywords: Spinal cord injury; apoptosis; autophagy; bone morphogenic protein; differentiation; inflammation; proliferation.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest Both authors declared that there are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Molecular components and pathways of BMP signaling. The BMP signaling is initiated by the binding of BMP ligands to BMPR1 and BMPR2. In the canonical pathway, BMP receptors phosphorylate Smad1/5/8, which can bind to Co-Smad4 and are translocated to the nucleus to regulate the expression of target genes. In the non-canonical pathways, BMP receptors activate non-Smad pathways. Termination of BMP signaling is achieved by noggin, Smad6, and/or Smad7. BMP: bone morphogenic protein; BMPR: BMP receptor
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Cellular manifestations of BMP signaling in SCI. This diagram illustrates the in vitro and in vivo effects of activation or inhibition of BMP signaling on neuronal and/or glial cell proliferation, differentiation, survival, apoptosis, autophagy, and inflammation in SCI. BMP: bone morphogenic protein; SCI: spinal cord injury; BAMBI: BMP and activin membrane-bound inhibitor; OPCs: oligodendrocyte precursor cells
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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