Downregulation of DNA methyltransferase-3a ameliorates the osteogenic differentiation ability of adipose-derived stem cells in diabetic osteoporosis via Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway.

Background: Diabetes-related osteoporosis (DOP) is a chronic disease caused by the high glucose environment that induces a metabolic disorder of osteocytes and osteoblast-associated mesenchymal stem cells. The processes of bone defect repair and regeneration become extremely difficult with DOP. Adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs), as seed cells in bone tissue engineering technology, provide a promising therapeutic approach for bone regeneration in DOP patients.

LncRNA-AK137033 inhibits the osteogenic potential of adipose-derived stem cells in diabetic osteoporosis by regulating Wnt signaling pathway via DNA methylation.

Objectives: Bone tissue engineering based on adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) is expected to become a new treatment for diabetic osteoporosis (DOP) patients with bone defects. However, compared with control ASCs (CON-ASCs), osteogenic potential of DOP-ASCs is decreased, which increased the difficulty of bone reconstruction in DOP patients. Moreover, the cause of the poor osteogenesis of ASCs in a hyperglycemic microenvironment has not been elucidated.