Bilirubin significantly decreased the alkaline phosphatase activity in primary human osteoblasts, with a clear-cut dose effect, because at 72 hours, differentiation decreased significantly by 14% and 55% at 50 μM and 100 μM bilirubin, respectively. Moreover, this detrimental effect of bilirubin selleck compound was already observed with bilirubin at 100 μM at all time

points (Fig. 1A). The presence of 10% FBS in the culture media prevented the detrimental effects on osteoblast differentiation, although there was a nonsignificant trend in the differentiation decreases (Fig. 1B). The addition of serum from jaundiced patients to cell cultures was also associated with reduced osteoblast differentiation, a finding that was already observed at the lowest concentration (2%) (Fig. 1C), being more evident with 10% and 20% plasma in the cultured media (Fig. 1D,F, respectively). Osteoblast differentiation was significantly diminished in experiments performed with sera from nonjaundiced patients as well, effects which were more evident with increasing concentrations, particularly at 96 hours (Fig. 1C,D,F). Thus, at 72 and 96 hours, the decrease in osteoblast differentiation was 16%

and 54% for samples (2% concentration) from nonjaundiced patients, and 46% and 69% for samples from jaundiced patients, respectively (P ≤ 0.024). PLX3397 solubility dmso Significant decreases in osteoblast differentiation were also observed with 10% and 20% sera concentration from jaundiced and nonjaundiced patients. The highest concentration (20%) decreased osteoblast differentiation by 47% and 62% in nonjaundiced patients and 44% and 67% in jaundiced patients at 72 and 96 hours, respectively (P ≤ 0.011). Osteoblast mineralization, as measured by

the alazarin red staining method, was significantly reduced in the experiments performed with 50 μM unconjugated bilirubin at all time points (reduction of 55%, 57%, 33%, and 32% bone nodule formation at 7, 14, 21, and 28 days of treatment, respectively), a finding which was not observed when 10 μM bilirubin was used (Fig. 2A). Moreover, the experiments Palmatine carried out with serum from healthy subjects and patients indicated that adding jaundiced serum to the culture resulted in a significant decrease of cell mineralization at all times, except at 7 days after treatment, whereas no differences with respect to healthy subjects were observed in the experiments performed with serum from nonjaundiced patients (Fig. 2B). Neither bilirubin nor jaundiced serum added to the osteoblast culture were associated with changes in the osteocalcin mRNA levels, although high concentrations of serum (20%) from patients and controls resulted in a decreased expression of osteocalcin mRNA. Unconjugated bilirubin (50 μM) increased the expression of OPG and RANKL, effects which were more prominent with a higher concentration of FBS in the culture media.