TY  - JOUR
A1  - Schliermann, Anna
A1  - Nickel, Joachim
T1  - Unraveling the connection between fibroblast growth factor and bone morphogenetic protein signaling
JF  - International Journal of Molecular Sciences
N2  - Ontogeny of higher organisms as well the regulation of tissue homeostasis in adult individuals requires a fine-balanced interplay of regulating factors that individually trigger the fate of particular cells to either stay undifferentiated or to differentiate towards distinct tissue specific lineages. In some cases, these factors act synergistically to promote certain cellular responses, whereas in other tissues the same factors antagonize each other. However, the molecular basis of this obvious dual signaling activity is still only poorly understood. Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) and fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) are two major signal protein families that have a lot in common: They are both highly preserved between different species, involved in essential cellular functions, and their ligands vastly outnumber their receptors, making extensive signal regulation necessary. In this review we discuss where and how BMP and FGF signaling cross paths. The compiled data reflect that both factors synchronously act in many tissues, and that antagonism and synergism both exist in a context-dependent manner. Therefore, by challenging a generalization of the connection between these two pathways a new chapter in BMP FGF signaling research will be introduced.
KW  - bone morphogenetic protein
KW  - fibroblast growth factor
KW  - signal transduction
KW  - cross-talk
KW  - signal integration
Y1  - 2018
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-177358
SN  - 1422-0067
VL  - 19
IS  - 10
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Seher, Axel
A1  - Lagler, Charlotte
A1  - Stühmer, Thorsten
A1  - Müller-Richter, Urs Dietmar Achim
A1  - Kübler, Alexander Christian
A1  - Sebald, Walter
A1  - Müller, Thomas Dieter
A1  - Nickel, Joachim
T1  - Utilizing BMP-2 muteins for treatment of multiple myeloma
JF  - PLoS ONE
N2  - Multiple myeloma (MM) represents a haematological cancer characterized by the pathological hyper proliferation of antibody-producing B-lymphocytes. Patients typically suffer from kidney malfunction and skeletal disorders. In the context of MM, the transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) member Activin A was recently identified as a promoter of both accompanying symptoms. Because studies have shown that bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-2-mediated activities are counteracted by Activin A, we analysed whether BMP2, which also binds to the Activin A receptors ActRII and ActRIIB but activates the alternative SMAD-1/5/8 pathway, can be used to antagonize Activin A activities, such as in the context of MM. Therefore three BMP2 derivatives were generated with modified binding activities for the type II (ActRIIB) and/or type I receptor (BMPRIA) showing either increased or decreased BMP2 activity. In the context of MM these BMP2 muteins show two functionalities since they act as a) an anti-proliferative/apoptotic agent against neoplastic B-cells, b) as a bone-formation promoting growth factor. The molecular basis of both activities was shown in two different cellular models to clearly rely on the properties of the investigated BMP2 muteins to compete for the binding of Activin A to the Activin type II receptors. The experimental outcome suggests new therapeutic strategies using BMP2 variants in the treatment of MM-related pathologies.
KW  - multiple myeloma
KW  - signaling
KW  - cell proliferation
KW  - cell binding
KW  - membrane receptor signaling
KW  - BMP
KW  - gene expression
KW  - B cell receptors
KW  - B cells
Y1  - 2017
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-158144
VL  - 12
IS  - 5
ER  -