Bone Abstracts

Neurofibromatosis type I (NF1) is a monogenetic disorder caused by mutations in the NF1 gene encoding for the Ras-GAP protein neurofibromin. Apart from benign tumour development NF1 is frequently associated with skeletal manifestations such as osteopenia or debilitating focal skeletal dysplasia. To assess a function of Nf1 in osteocytes we here apply a combinatorial approach of biophysical, histological and molecular techniques allowing differential analysis ...

Heritability of bone mineral density (BMD) varies at skeletal sites, possibly reflecting different relative contributions of environmental and genetic influences. To quantify shared genetic influences across different sites, we estimated the genetic correlation of BMD at the upper limb (UL), lower limb (LL) and skull (S) obtained from whole body DXA scans, using bivariate genome-wide complex trait analysis (GCTA). The study (n=9395) combined data from the Avon Longitu...

Introduction: Bone mineral density (BMD) is a highly heritable trait used to assess skeletal health in children and risk of osteoporosis later in life. To date >60 loci associated with bone-related traits measured at different skeletal sites have been identified. We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) meta-analysis of total body (TB-)BMD in children and adults to identify genetic determinants and age-specific effects of loci on this trait.<p class="abstext...

Objectives: Osteoporosis is a frequent cause of morbidity in boys with glucocorticoid (GC)-treated Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). We sought to determine the frequency and characteristics of the two most debilitating types of fractures, vertebral and long bone (VF and LBF), in pediatric DMD.Methods: This was a prospective, bi-centre, single-visit observational study in boys 4 to 17 years of age with genetically-confirmed DMD. The bone health assessmen...

Survival of chronic diseases in childhood is often achieved utilizing glucocorticoids. However, the survival comes at a cost to the growing skeleton, resulting in impairment in the acquisition of peak bone mass and is the major etiology of secondary osteoporosis in children. We recently found that preosteoclasts secrete platelet derived growth factor type BB (PDGF-BB) to promote angiogenesis and osteogenesis during both modeling and remodeling. As glucocorticoid therapy affect...

The aim of the study is to determine whether there is an imbalance between bone formation and bone resorption in nonbacterial osteitis. The osteoclast inhibitor pamidronate has been successfully used in nonbacterial osteitis. It is assumed, that there is any mismatch in the pathophysiology of osteoblasts or osteoclasts. Until now, we have no known publications on bone metabolism in nonbacterial osteitis. We chose osteoprotegerin (OP) and alkaline phosphatase (AP) as markers of...

In type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients, an increased fracture risk is observed, although the bone mineral density is even higher than in non-diabetic patients. This raises the question of the quality of the organic and inorganic matrix in bone1–3. T2DM is also known to forward dysfunctions in the development of soft tissues such as brittle skin due to cross-linking of the collagen or inflammation of the gingiva. For the latter, a possible influence of diab...

Fragility fractures including hip fracture are a significant global burden. There is a growing body of evidence that the early environment influences an individual’s risk of fracture. Evidence from longitudinal studies have demonstrated the relationship between measures of body size in early life with later bone mass and risk of fragility fracture. These observations have been extended by parent/offspring cohorts with detailed examination of the maternal environment and s...

β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) biomaterials have been approved for the repair of osseous defects. However, in large defects, the substitution of biomaterial by authentic bone is inadequate to provide sufficient long-term mechanical stability. We aimed to develop composites of β-TCP ceramics and receptor activator of nuclear factor κ-B ligand (RANKL) to enhance the formation of osteoclasts thereby stimulating material resorption. RANKL was immobilized on &#9...

Introduction: Nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates (N-BPs) can inhibit the differentiation and function of osteoclasts derived from Peripheral Blood Mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in a dose-dependent manner. MUTZ-3 cells are a potentially useful human cell line for studying osteoclast differentiation. The aim of this study was to elucidate the action of N-BPs on MUTZ-3 cells.Methods: Human PBMCs and MUTZ-3 cells were cultured in α-MEM supplemented with he...