Vitamin K(2) inhibits adipogenesis, osteoclastogenesis, and ODF/RANK ligand expression in murine bone marrow cell cultures.

Several lines of evidence suggest that vitamin K has nutritional and pharmacological effects against bone loss. To clarify effects of vitamin K on bone marrow cells, which contains progenitors of both osteoblasts and osteoclasts, we examined mouse bone marrow cell cultures in the presence of vitamin K(1) (K1) and menatetrenone (MK4), a vitamin K(2) with four isoprene units. Treatment with MK4 but not K1 inhibited the formation of adipocytes and stimulated alkaline phosphatase activity, an early differentiation marker of osteoblast. Although nuclear receptor PPARgamma2 plays a pivotal role in adipogenesis, MK4 had no effects on the expression of PPARgamma2 mRNA and PPARgamma2-dependent transcriptional activity. MK4 inhibited the expression of osteoclast differentiation factor (ODF)/RANK ligand and the formation of osteoclast-like cells induced by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3). These results suggest that MK4 specifically influences differentiation and functions of bone marrow cells to inhibit adipogenesis and osteoclastogenesis. At the expense of adipogenesis, MK4 might stimulate osteoblastogenesis in bone marrow cells. Therefore, MK4 may favor bone metabolism to spare bone mass as a compound that modulates cellular differentiation and functions in bone marrow in addition to as a nutrient factor.