Immobilized-OPG-Fc on a titanium surface inhibits RANKL-dependent osteoclast differentiation in vitro

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of osteoprotegerin (OPG)-Fc fusion protein immobilized on a titanium surface on the initial differentiation of osteoclast precursor RAW264.7 cells. These cells were cultured on titanium specimens over which OPG-Fc was immobilized. The enhancement of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) and cathepsin K mRNA expression in RAW264.7 cells exposed to receptor activator of NF-kappaB ligand (RANKL) stimulation on OPG-Fc-coated titanium was significantly lower than that in RAW264.7 cells exposed to RANKL on titanium specimens without immobilized OPG-Fc (ANOVA, P < 0.01). Preincubation of OPG-Fc-coated titanium, in a medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum at 37 degrees C for two days before the cells were seeded, had no significant effect on the decrease in mRNA expression (ANOVA, P < 0.01). Taken together, these results indicate that OPG-Fc immobilized on a titanium surface blocks the differentiation of RAW264.7 cells induced by RANKL stimulation.