Extracellular calcium regulates the adhesion and migration of osteoclasts via integrin αvβ3/Rho A/Cytoskeleton signaling

Abstract Integrin αvβ3 is a transmembrane integrin, which can initiate osteoclasts’ attachment on bones, leading to downward signaling pathways and subsequent bone resorption. Different calcium concentrations have been reported to have an influence on the activation of integrin αvβ3. To elucidate the regulatory mechanism of extracellular calcium concentrations on osteoclasts, a controlled micro flow plate (M04S) was utilized in the ONIX flow control system to observe the osteoclasts’ adhesion and migration in different calcium concentration media. Fluorescent staining is conducted to show the distribution of integrin αvβ3 and cytoskeleton reorganization. In addition, western blots were performed to detect the expression of integrin αvβ3 and its downstream signaling pathways related to bone resorption. Also, real‐time reverse‐transcription polymerase chain reaction data of transcription co‐activator (YAP/TAZ) and hydrolytic enzymes (the matrix metalloproteinase 9 and cathepsin K) are evaluated. Our findings suggest that osteoclasts’ migration and adhesion is better promoted at 0.5 mM than 1.2 mM, which can be partly explained by the induced cytoskeleton organization via integrin αvβ3/Rho GTPase. But the activation and nuclear localization of YAP/TAZ, and the secretion of hydrolytic enzymes were upregulated when the calcium concentration is at a higher level (1.2 mM). According to our study, there is a high possibility that the migration and attachment of osteoclasts and subsequent osteoclastic bone resorption are regulated over a specific range of extracellular calcium concentration.