Regulatory effect of bone morphogenetic protein-2 on expression of cartilage specificity gene mRNA in the human intervertebral discs

Objective To assess the regulatory effects of bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) on the gene expression of cartilage specificity gene Sox9,Type Ⅱ collagen and aggrecan mRNA in the human intervertebral discs.Methods RT-PCR was used to investigate the effects of BMP-2 on the gene expression of Sox9,Type Ⅱ collagen and aggrecan mRNA in intervertebral discs cells cultures of embryo.Results Exposure to 100 μg/L (0.149± 0.006, P 0.05) and 1?000 μg/L (0.163± 0.006, P 0.01) BMP-2 in serum-free medium caused a significant dose-dependent stimulation compared to 0 μg/L of Sox9 mRNA.On the same concentrations,BMP-2 could also increase the expression of mRNA of Type II collagen and aggrecan genes in a dose-dependent manner in the intervertebral discs.Conclusion BMP-2 could cause a dose-dependent stimulation on Sox9,Type Ⅱ collagen and aggrecan gene expression in human discs.