Bone Abstracts

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Milk fat globule-epidermal growth factor 8 (MFG-E8) is a glycoprotein that controls the engulfment of apoptotic cells and exerts anti-inflammatory effects. It has been implicated in the pathogenesis of several diseases, but its role in the bone microenvironment is still unknown. Here we tested the hypothesis that MFG-E8 also regulates bone metabolism and the development of arthritis.MFG-E8 expression was detected in mouse bones and primary murine osteobl...

Glucocorticoids (GC) are effective drugs in the treatment of inflammatory diseases, including various forms of arthritis. However, their use is limited by negative effects on bone mass and strength, resulting in increased osteoporotic fractures. Conditional knockout mice demonstrated that the GR in osteoblasts is essential for GC-dependent bone loss. Recent studies show that GC profoundly inhibit Wnt signaling by stimulating the expression of Wnt antagonists such as dickkopf-1...

Antenatal glucocorticoid (GC) injections are not only used to enhance fetal lung maturation in preterm children but also for the treatment of maternal conditions such as autoimmune diseases or infections. Animal models and clinical studies suggest that the regulation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis is altered in the offspring of GC-treated mothers with increased sensitivity to stress.Objective: The aim of this study is i) to define t...

Fractures of the hip are serious complications associated with osteoporosis. In previous work we found evidence of osteoblast dysfunction in middle aged men with idiopathic osteoporosis. The aim of this study was to investigate gene expression and bone microarchitecture in bone samples derived from elderly men with osteoporotic hip fractures. Femoral heads and adjacent bone tissue from 12 men with low-trauma hip fractures (mean age 82±7 years) and consecutive surgical hip...

Chronic stress and depression are associated with alterations in the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal signalling cascade and considered a risk factor for bone loss and fractures. However, the mechanisms underlying the association between stress and poor bone health are unclear. Utilising a transgenic (tg) mouse model in which glucocorticoid signalling is selectively disrupted in mature osteoblasts and osteocytes (HSD2OB-tg mice), the current study examines t...

Osteoporosis is a frequent disease leading to an increased risk of fractures caused by a systemic impairment of bone mass, strength, and microarchitecture. Given the emerging role of the Wnt signaling pathway in bone biology, we focused on the function of the important Wnt inhibitor dickkopf-1 (Dkk-1) and examined how the deletion of Dkk-1 solely in osteoblasts or osteocytes influences bone homeostasis. Therefore, we used the Cre-LoxP recombination system and crossed Dkk-1-flo...

Chronic stress and depression are associated with alterations in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal signalling cascade and considered a risk factor for bone loss and fractures. However, the mechanisms underlying the association between stress and poor bone health are unclear. Utilising a transgenic (tg) mouse model in which glucocorticoid signalling is selectively disrupted in mature osteoblasts and osteocytes (HSD2OB-tg mice), the current study examines the impact ...

Introduction: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) counteract the decline of physiologic functions but their regenerative power decreases with age. In particular osteogenic differentiation capacity of MSCs has been shown to decrease with age thereby contributing to slowed down bone formation and osteoporosis. While much is known about cellular aging of MSCs, little is known about extrinsic factors influencing their functionality. Here we set out to identify circulating factors of the...

Aging is a complex process that results in the decline of physiologic functions due to accumulation of damage in cells and tissues. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) counteract this decline but their regeneration capacity decreases with age. In particular osteogenic differentiation potential of MSCs has been shown to decrease with age thereby contributing to slowed down bone formation and osteoporosis. While much is known about cellular aging of MSCs, little is known about factors...