Chen Kaixuan, Chen Longjun, Ma Yizhong, Chen Siqi, Liu Jinze, Zhou Hangyu, Chen Yuzhu, Liu Guanyi
Health Science Center, Ningbo University, Ningbo, China.
College of Medicine, Universitas Prima Indonesia, Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia.
Front Pharmacol. 2025 Aug 11;16:1614542. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2025.1614542. eCollection 2025.
The skeletal system is an important support structure in the human body, and its homeostatic state is highly relevant to the development of a wide range of orthopaedic diseases. The search for key regulatory factors associated with skeletal development is essential for exploring potential therapeutic targets for bone diseases. Nerve Growth Factor (NGF), the first neurotrophic factor to be discovered, plays an important role in regulating immune cell function, influencing angiogenesis and participating in the physiological and pathological processes of bone homeostasis. Here, we mainly review the biological functions of NGF in the skeletal system and its molecular mechanisms, analyse the pathophysiological roles of the NGF signaling pathway in skeletal diseases such as osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, and fracture healing, and summarize the progress and challenges of the current clinical research on therapeutic strategies targeting NGF. In addition, we provide an overview of NGF and highlight the role of NGF in the regulation of bone formation and bone resorption. Therefore, by reviewing the literature related to NGF and bone diseases, this paper summarises the specific regulatory mechanisms of NGF in various bone diseases, which provides new perspectives and intervention targets for the treatment of skeletal diseases, especially in the field of diseases in which the effects of traditional treatments are limited. The therapeutic strategies targeting neurotrophic factors show broad prospects for clinical application.
骨骼系统是人体重要的支撑结构，其稳态状态与多种骨科疾病的发生发展密切相关。寻找与骨骼发育相关的关键调控因子对于探索骨疾病的潜在治疗靶点至关重要。神经生长因子（NGF）是首个被发现的神经营养因子，在调节免疫细胞功能、影响血管生成以及参与骨稳态的生理和病理过程中发挥着重要作用。在此，我们主要综述NGF在骨骼系统中的生物学功能及其分子机制，分析NGF信号通路在骨质疏松症、骨关节炎和骨折愈合等骨骼疾病中的病理生理作用，并总结目前针对NGF治疗策略的临床研究进展与挑战。此外，我们对NGF进行概述并强调其在骨形成和骨吸收调节中的作用。因此，通过回顾与NGF和骨疾病相关的文献，本文总结了NGF在各种骨疾病中的具体调控机制，为骨骼疾病的治疗提供了新的视角和干预靶点，尤其是在传统治疗效果有限的疾病领域。针对神经营养因子的治疗策略展现出广阔的临床应用前景。
