Tricin enhances osteoblastogenesis through the regulation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in human mesenchymal stem cells

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent stromal cells that are capable of differentiate into multilineage cell types including bone in vitro and in vivo. Aim of the study: They have been widely developed as a therapeutic approach for bone tissue repair and regeneration. However, the efficiency of lineage specific differentiation still needs improvement. We investigated the effect of Tricin on the proliferation of human adult MSCs by alamar blue assay, the mineralization of MSCs by staining of calcium deposition, and the expression levels of the osteoblastic marker genes during osteogenic differentiation of MSCs. Moreover, we also checked the effects of Tricin on the expression of key genes in Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. We found Tricin could promote proliferation of MSCs, as well as their mineralization. Tricin could also enhance the expression of osteogenesis marker genes including Bone sialoprotein, osteocalcin, Alkaline phosphatase, and RUNX2. Furthermore, we found out that neither siβ-catenin nor GSK-3β had effect on Tricin treatment, but siWnt3α could neutralize the effect of Tricin. Tricin can enhance osteoblastogenesis through the regulation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in human adult MSCs in vitro.