Bone morphogenetic protein 9 is a candidate prognostic biomarker and host-directed therapy target for sepsis

Defining next-generation immune therapeutics for the treatment of sepsis will involve biomarker-based therapeutic decision-making. Bone morphogenetic protein 9 (BMP9) is a cytokine in the transforming growth factor–β superfamily. Here, circulating BMP9 concentrations were quantified in two independent cohorts of patients with sepsis. Decreased concentrations of serum BMP9 were observed in the patients with sepsis at the time of admission as compared with healthy controls. Concentrations of BMP9 at the time of admission were also associated with 28-day mortality, because patients with sepsis at a higher risk of death had lower BMP9 concentrations. The mechanism driving the contribution of BMP9 to host immunity was further investigated using in vivo murine sepsis models and in vitro cell models. We found that BMP9 treatment improved outcome in mice with experimental sepsis. BMP9-treated mice exhibited increased macrophage influx into the peritoneal cavity and more efficient bacterial clearance than untreated mice. In vitro, BMP9 promoted macrophage recruitment, phagocytosis, and subsequent bacterial killing. We further found that deletion of the type 1 BMP receptor ALK1 in macrophages abolished BMP9-mediated protection against polymicrobial sepsis in vivo. Further experiments indicated that the regulation of macrophage activation by the BMP9-ALK1 axis was mainly mediated through the suppressor of mother against decapentaplegic 1/5 signaling pathway. Together, these results suggest that BMP9 can both serve as a biomarker for patient stratification with an independent prognostic value and be developed as a host-directed therapy for sepsis.