Sclerostin (SOST) and Secreted Frizzled Related Protein 2 (SFRP-2) are two Wnt
antagonists that are important for maintaining bone homeostasis through different modes
of regulation. Wnt signaling is an important regulator of hematopoietic stem cell and
progenitor cells as well as lymphoid cells, but there are only a few studies that have
investigated the influence of Wnt antagonists on hematopoiesis. In addition, Wnt
signaling guides osteoblastic fate, in turn directing mineralization, which can also
potentially influence hematopoiesis. Wnt antagonists are currently being targeted for
treatments in osteoporosis, further demonstrating the importance of understanding how
Wnt antagonists influence hematopoietic cell fate decisions. In this dissertation, I have
shown that mineralization using in vitro mineralizing and non-mineralizing MC3T3-E1
osteoblast like cell lines display increased SFRP-2 expression, which correlated to a
decrease in hematopoietic differentiation in mineralizing MC3T3-E1 co-cultures seeded
with hematopoietic stem cells. We extended this study to an in vivo system using
sclerostin knockout (Sost-/-) mice that display overactive osteoblast and osteocytes
populations. Sclerostin is secreted by osteocytes and mature osteoblasts transitioning to
the osteocyte fate and blocks Wnt signaling by binding to Lrp4/5/6 receptors. Using
Sost-/- mice, I observed decreased B cell survival in the bone marrow due to changes in
the B cell microenvironment through alteration in CXCL12 and SCF. Interestingly,
competitive and serial transplantation assays demonstrated that the absence of Sost
resulted in increases in hematopoietic stem cell engraftment in the bone marrow. Taken
together, our work demonstrates an underappreciated role of the Wnt antagonist
Sclerostin, as well as the influence of osteoblast mineralization, on hematopoiesis.