Abstract:Objective To investigate the gene expression of Piezo1 in four types of bone cells at different stages of osteogenic differentiation under fluid shear stress (FSS). Methods The mouse-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSC), osteoblast-like cells MC3T3-E1, post-osteoblasts MLO-A5 and osteocytes MLO-Y4 were exposed to FSS at different magnitude (0.1, 1.1 Pa) with a custom-made cone-plate flow chamber for 0.5, 1, 3, 6, 12 h, respectively. The expression of Piezo1 mRNA was assessed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results Both Piezo1 and Piezo2 were expressed in four types of bone cells. The expression of Piezo1 was significantly up-regulated in all cells under FSS stimulation, and the expression level under 1.1 Pa FSS was significantly higher than that under 0.1 Pa FSS. In addition, the expression of Piezo1 in MSC, MC3T3-E1 and MLO-A5 cells increased to the highest level at 1 h under FSS stimulation. The expression of Piezo1 in MC3T3-E1 cells was much higher than that in the other three types of cells. Conclusions The expression of Piezo1 was related to the process of osteogenic differentiation, FSS level and loading time, and this research finding is of great significance to reveal the mechanism of mechanotransduction in bone tissues and to establish clinical treatment for bone diseases.