Biosynthetic processing of fibrillar procollagens is essential for producing mature collagen monomers that polymerize into fibrils by a self-assembly process. The metalloproteinase ADAMTS-2 is the major enzyme that processes the N-propeptide of type I procollagen in the skin and also of type II and type III procollagens. Mutations in the ADAMTS-2 gene cause dermatospraxis in animals and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome VIIC in humans, both of which are characterized by the accumulation of type I pN-collagen and the formation of abnormal collagen fibrils in the skin. Despite its importance in procollagen processing, little is known about the regulation of ADAMTS-2 expression. Here, we demonstrate that ADAMTS-2 can be regulated by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3, an inducer of type I procollagen synthesis. This steroid hormone induced ADAMTS-2 mRNA ~3-fold in MG-63 human osteosarcoma cells and MC3T3-E1 murine osteoblastic cells. This induction was dose- and time-dependent in MG-63 cells. In contrast, secreted ADAMTS-2 protein was increased only 1.4-fold with 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3. Finally, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 in the presence of ascorbate increased levels of secreted ADAMTS-2 1.9-fold over ascorbate treatment alone, which did not appreciably change ADAMTS-2 expression. These data indicate that the regulation of ADAMTS-2 is coupled with the synthesis of type I procollagen through 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 signaling and may involve translational or posttranslational control.

• Seungbok Lee(School of Dentistry and Dental Research Institute, Seoul National University) Corresponding author
• Eun-Young Jeon(School of Dentistry and Dental Research Institute, Seoul National University)
• Hyun-Man Kim(School of Dentistry and Dental Research Institute, Seoul National University)