Bone Morphogenetic Proteins: Structure, biological function and therapeutic applications

• Published in: Archives of biochemistry and biophysics 2014-11, Vol.561, p.64-73
• Main Authors: Carreira, Ana Claudia, Alves, Gutemberg Gomes, Zambuzzi, William Fernando, Sogayar, Mari Cleide, Granjeiro, José Mauro
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Bone and Bones - physiology; Bone Morphogenetic Proteins; Bone Morphogenetic Proteins - chemistry; Bone Morphogenetic Proteins - genetics; Bone Morphogenetic Proteins - metabolism; Bone repair; Cell Communication - physiology; Extracellular matrix; Humans; Molecular Sequence Data; Osteogenesis - physiology; Osteogenesis inducing proteins; Peptide growth factors; Structure-Activity Relationship; Tissue engineering; Tissue Engineering - methods
• ISSN: 0003-9861; 1096-0384
• DOI: 10.1016/j.abb.2014.07.011

•BMPs act as homodimers or heterodimers.•BMPs interfere in cell proliferation/differentiation, morphogenesis, organogenesis.•BMPs signaling involves Smad or Ras/ERK/MAPK complex cell signaling pathways.•Clinical use of human recombinant BMPs accelerates bone regeneration.•Studies are required to better understand the limitations of the clinical use of BMPs. Bone Morphogenetic Proteins (BMPs) are multifunctional secreted cytokines, which belong to the TGF-β superfamily. These glycoproteins act as a disulfide-linked homo- or heterodimers, being potent regulators of bone and cartilage formation and repair, cell proliferation during embryonic development and bone homeostasis in the adult. BMPs are promising molecules for tissue engineering and bone therapy. The present review discusses this family of proteins, their structure and biological function, their therapeutic applications and drawbacks, their effects on mesenchymal stem cells differentiation, and the cell signaling pathways involved in this process.