Rhinacanthin C Inhibits Osteoclast Differentiation and Bone Resorption: Roles of TRAF6/TAK1/MAPKs/NF-κB/NFATc1 Signaling

Rhinacanthin C is a naphthoquinone ester with anti-inflammatory activity, found in Rhinacanthus nasutus (L) Kurz (Acanthaceae). We found that rhinacanthin C inhibited osteoclast differentiation stimulated by the receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL) in mouse bone marrow macrophage cultures, although the precise molecular mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are unclear. In this study, we investigated the inhibitory mechanisms of rhinacanthin C in osteoclastogenesis. Rhinacanthin C suppressed RANKL-induced nuclear factor of activated T cells c1 (NFATc1) expression. Phosphorylation of ERK, JNK, and NF-κB, but not p38, was inhibited by rhinacanthin C, which also inhibited RANKL-stimulated TRAF6-TAK1 complex formation. Thus, the anti-osteoclastogenic effect of rhinacanthin C is mediated by a cascade of inhibition of RANKL-induced TRAF6-TAK1 association followed by activation of MAPKs/NF-κB; this leads to suppression of c-Fos and NFATc1, which regulate transcription of genes associated with osteoclast differentiation. In vivo, rhinacanthin C also reduced RANKL-induced osteoclast formation and bone resorption in mouse calvaria. Rhinacanthin C also suppressed LPS-stimulated osteoclastogenesis and bone resorption in vitro and in vivo. Rhinacanthin C may provide a novel therapy for abnormal bone lysis that occurs during inflammatory bone resorption.