Icariin Augments Bone Formation and Reverses the Phenotypes of Osteoprotegerin-Deficient Mice through the Activation of Wnt/β-Catenin-BMP Signaling

Figure 7

Icariin-induced osteoblast differentiation in a β-catenin-dependent manner. Ad-Cre infection significantly inhibited Icariin-induced expression of BMP2 (a), BMP4 (b), ALP (c), and OC (d). Ad-Cre-mediated deletion of the β-catenin gene was demonstrated by the reduction of β-catenin mRNA (e) and protein (f) expression in these cells. Data were expressed as mean ± SD, 𝑛=3. ^∗𝑃<0.05, unpaired Student’s t-test (Ad-GFP + Icariin group versus Ad-GFP + Control group) and ^∗∗𝑃<0.05, unpaired Student’s t-test (Ad-Cre + Icariin group versus Ad-GFP + Icariin group).

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