Bone Abstracts

Background: Children with special needs may be greater risk of vitamin D deficiency due to decreased mobility and outdoor play, concomitant medications that increase catabolism of vitamin D, reduced nutritional intake and low body weight. Gastrostomy-fed children receiving a nutritionally complete formula may still be at risk of vitamin D deficiency due to the above factors.Objective: The objective of this study is to assess the vitamin D status of speci...

Background: Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP) is a rare condition characterised by congenital malformation of the great toes and progressive heterotopic endochondral ossification. The disease progresses with episodic flare-ups, resulting in disabling cumulative immobility. The discovery of the ACVR1 gene as the cause of FOP has allowed identification of therapeutic targets. Palovarotene, a retinoic acid receptor gamma agonist, is in phase 2 clinical trials.<...

Delta-like 1/fetal antigen-1 (DLK1/FA1) is a negative regulator of bone mass in vivo as it inhibits osteoblast (OB) and stimulates osteoclast differentiation. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying these effects are not known. Thus, we studied the effect of DLK1/FA1 on different signaling pathways known to regulate OB differentiation. We identified DLK1/FA1 as an inhibitor of BMP2-induced OB differentiation. Stable overexpression of DLK1/FA1 in C2C12 cells or th...

Background: Infantile hypercalcemia occurs in ~15% of patients with Williams Syndrome (WS) and is typically mild. Severe hypercalcemia has been reported in infants/toddlers with WS, requiring treatment with intravenous (IV) saline hydration, furosemide, calcitonin, calcium and vitamin D restriction, and in some cases IV bisphosphonates.Presenting problem: Three cases of infants with WS age 9–13 months presented with severe hypercalcemia, failure to ...

Background: Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is a rare disease characterized by increased fracture rate and bone deformities. Patients are classified by phenotype and most are affected by mutations in COL1A1/2.Patients with OI type V present with specific clinical symptoms including hyperplastic callus formation, only mildly decreased height, metaphyseal lines and a calcification of the membrane interossea of the forearm. The disease causing mutation for OI ...

Background: Treatment with multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) has the potential to ameliorate mesodermal disorders.Objective: To treat severe osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) with fetal MSC.Methods: Ten years ago, we treated a fetus with OI type III (COL1A2: c.3008G>A, p.Gly1003Asp) in utero with fetal HLA-mismatched MSC. The procedure was uncomplicated. At the age of 4 months i.v. pamidronete treatment was starte...

Radiation therapy is one of the most effective and indispensable treatment modalities for cancer patients. Known tissue complications caused by radiation-induced stem cell depletion, may result in structural and functional alterations of the surrounding matrix. Although, studies have demonstrated that ionizing radiation can induce apoptosis and senescence, little is known about the effects of therapeutic irradiation concerning the commitment of mesenchymal stem cells to the os...

Aim: Osteoporosis and resulting spontaneous fractures in young patients with neurological impairments living outside institutions have not received much attention. The aim of this study was to determine the degree of demineralization in children and teens with such disabilities living in South Lebanon, an under privileged region.Subjects and methods: We reviewed 40 patients attending outpatient clinics in a referral rehabilitation center in South Lebanon...

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Abaloparatide (ABL) is a novel analog of hPTHrP (1–34) in clinical development for treatment of osteoporosis. This study evaluated the long-term effects of ABL on BMD and bone strength in aged osteopenic, ovariectomized (OVX) monkeys. Four groups of ≥9-year-old female cynomolgus monkeys underwent OVX and one group underwent Sham surgery. After a 9-month bone depletion period, increases in bone markers and decreases in BMD by DXA and pQCT were observed for OVX groups...