Cells migrating to sites of tissue damage in response to the danger signal HMGB1 require NF-κB activation

Tissue damage is usually followed by healing, as both differentiated and stem cells migrate to replace dead or damaged cells. Mesoangioblasts (vessel-associated stem cells that can repair muscles) and fibroblasts migrate toward soluble factors released by damaged tissue. Two such factors are high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), a nuclear protein that is released by cells undergoing unscheduled death ( necrosis) but not by apoptotic cells, and stromal derived factor (SDF)-1/CXCL12. We find that HMGB1 activates the canonical nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappa B) pathway via extracellular signal-regulated kinase phosphorylation. NF-kappa B signaling is necessary for chemotaxis toward HMGB1 and SDF-1/CXCL12, but not toward growth factor platelet-derived growth factor, formyl-met-leu-phe (a peptide that mimics bacterial invasion), or the archetypal NF-kappa B-activating signal tumor necrosis factor a. In dystrophic mice, mesoangioblasts injected into the general circulation ingress inefficiently into muscles if their NF-kappa B signaling pathway is disabled. These findings suggest that NF-kappa B signaling controls tissue regeneration in addition to early events in inflammation.