Glucocorticoid regulation of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 messenger ribonucleic acid and protein in normal and malignant rat osteoblasts.

Glucocorticoids exert potent inhibitory effects on bone formation. We have previously shown that glucocorticoids suppress plasminogen activator (PA) activity in normal and malignant rat osteoblasts. To clarify the mechanism of this suppression, we investigated the effects of dexamethasone on PA inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), tissue-type PA (tPA), and urokinase-type PA (uPA) expression and also on PAI-1 protein and PA activity in both normal rat calvarial osteoblasts and a clonal osteogenic sarcoma cell line, UMR 106-01. Dexamethasone increased PAI-1 mRNA and protein in both cell types. The increase in PAI-1 protein and the decrease in PA activity were obtained over the same concentration range, with a half-maximally effective concentration of dexamethasone of about 10(-9) M. The increase in PAI-1 mRNA caused by dexamethasone was retained with cycloheximide treatment, but abolished with actinomycin-D. Dexamethasone had no effect on tPA or uPA mRNA in either cell type. The glucocorticoid antagonist RU 486 prevented the effects of dexamethasone on PA activity and PAI-1 protein. Dihydrotestosterone, progesterone, and 17 beta-estradiol did not influence PA activity or PAI-1 formation. Although tPA and uPA protein could not be measured, these results suggest that glucocorticoids suppress PA activity predominantly by increasing PAI-1 synthesis in rat osteoblasts. Suppression of PA activity through actions on PAI-1 formation by glucocorticoids could contribute to the mechanisms by which glucocorticoids inhibit bone formation.