Osteonectin, bone proteoglycan, and phosphophoryn defects in a form of bovine osteogenesis imperfecta

Bovine osteogenesis imperfecta is a congenital disease in Holstein cattle having several characteristics in common with human osteogenesis imperfecta syndromes. In particular, affected calves have multiple bone fractures and friable teeth. Bone collagen isolated from the affected animals (Texas variant) showed slightly decreased alpha 1(I) and alpha 2(I) chain electrophoretic mobility and increased hydroxylysine content. Overall collagen was present in the affected bones at 80-90% of normal values. However, osteonectin, a 32,000 Mr bone-specific protein found previously to promote collagen mineralization in vitro and present in abundance (approximately equal to 3% of total protein) in normal calf bone, was severely depleted (less than 2% of normal levels) in the osteogenesis imperfecta bone and dentin. The bone proteoglycan was similarly depleted. In contrast, the bone sialoprotein was not as severely affected. Further, the diseased teeth lacked (less than 10% of normal values) phosphophoryn, a dentin-specific protein normally present as 4-5% of the total calf dentin matrix. The data suggest multiple hard tissue matrix protein deletions, perhaps due to impaired cell development.