Coupled signaling between bone-forming osteoblasts and bone-resorbing osteoclasts is crucial to the maintenance of bone homeostasis. We previously reported that v-crk avian sarcoma virus CT10 oncogene homolog-like (CrkL), which belongs to the Crk family of adaptors, inhibits bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2)-mediated osteoblast differentiation, while enhancing receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B ligand (RANKL)-induced osteoclast differentiation. In this study, we investigated whether CrkL can also regulate the coupling signals between osteoblasts and osteoclasts, facilitating bone homeostasis. Osteoblastic CrkL strongly decreased RANKL expression through its inhibition of runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2) transcription. Reduction in RANKL expression by CrkL in osteoblasts resulted in the inhibition of not only osteoblast-dependent osteoclast differentiation but also osteoclast-dependent osteoblast differentiation, suggesting that CrkL participates in the coupling signals between osteoblasts and osteoclasts via its regulation of RANKL expression. Therefore, CrkL bifunctionally regulates osteoclast differentiation through both a direct and indirect mechanism while it inhibits osteoblast differentiation through its blockade of both BMP2 and RANKL reverse signaling pathways. Collectively, these data suggest that CrkL is involved in bone homeostasis, where it helps to regulate the complex interactions of the osteoblasts, osteoclasts, and their coupling signals.
Keywords: CrkL; RANKL; bone homeostasis; coupling signal; osteoblast; osteoclast.