Bone Abstracts

A major limitation in the development of cellular therapies using human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) is cell survival post-transplantation. In this study, we challenged the current paradigm of hMSC survival, which assigned a pivotal role to oxygen, by testing the hypothesis that exogenous glucose may be key to hMSC survival. We demonstrated that hMSCs could endure sustained near-anoxia conditions only in the presence of glucose. In this in vitro cell model, the prot...

Introduction: Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is characterized by low bone mass, skeletal fragility and, frequently, short stature. We previously showed in oim/oim mice that sclerostin inhibition increased bone mass, mineral content and strength. Here, we compared the body length and the sizes of long bones, head and vertebrae between oim/oim and wildtype mice and analyzed the effect of sclerostin antibody (Scl-Ab) on these parameters.Materials and methods:...

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate and compare the preferences of patients and health care professionals for osteoporotic drug treatment.Materials and methods: A discrete choice experiment was conducted among patients and health care professionals (general physicians, rheumatologists, and geriatricians) in Belgium. Participants were asked to choose between two hypothetical unlabelled drug treatments (and an opt-out option) that vary in several attri...

Skeletal diseases are a large and diverse group of rare monogenic phenotypes and there are more than 450 unique and well-characterised chondrodysplasia phenotypes that range in severity from relatively mild to severe and lethal forms. Studying these genetically tractable chondrodysplasia phenotypes provides insight into disease pathways that may be relevant to the more common and polygenic forms of OA.Pseudoachondroplasia (PSACH) and multiple epiphyseal ...

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Many disorders cause osteosclerosis, and many exclusively affect adults. Pediatricians are likely to encounter those that are Mendelian diseases, with most still classified as ‘dysplasias’ although now understood at the gene level. Thus, there is promise for defining their molecular and biochemical pathogeneses, and for developing targeted medical treatments. Sclerosing bone dysplasias too have become the ‘turf’ of the metabolic bone disease specialist. How...

Biographical DetailsMichael P Whyte is Professor of Medicine, Pediatrics, and Genetics at the Washington University School of Medicine, a staff member of Barnes-Jewish Hospital and St. Louis Children’s Hospital, and Medical-Scientific Director at the Center for Metabolic Bone Disease and Molecular Research, Shriners Hospital for Children in St. Louis, Missouri, USA.<p class="abst...

Background: Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is a heterogeneous group of inherited disorders of bone formation, resulting in low bone mass and an increased propensity to fracture. It is a variable condition with a range of clinical severity. About 90% of patients with a clinical diagnosis of OI have a mutation in the COL1A1 or COL1A2 genes, which shows an autosomal dominant pattern (AD) of inheritance. Other genes are associated with the autosomal recessive (AR) ...

Genetic skeletal diseases (GSDs) are an extremely diverse and complex group of rare genetic diseases that primarily affect the development and homeostasis of the osseous skeleton. There are more than 450 unique and well-characterised phenotypes that range in severity from relatively mild to severe and lethal forms. Although individually rare, as a group of related genetic diseases, GSDs have an overall prevalence of at least 1/4000 child. Qualitative defects in cartilage struc...

Biographical DetailsMichael D Briggs obtained his PhD at the MRC Clinical Research Centre, Harrow, studying the genetic basis of osteogenesis imperfecta. He undertook postdoctoral work at UCLA identifying the genetic basis of chondrodysplasias. In 1996 Mike moved to Manchester as an AR-UK Fellow to continue studying disease mechanisms in chondrodysplasia. In 2004 he was awarded a Wellcome...