Scientists discover mechanism of bone growth

In a study published in Cell Stem Cell, the research group led by Dr. Zhou Bo from the Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences ...

Balancing between build-up and break-down of bone

Despite what some people think, bone is not merely a passive component of the body. The skeleton is structurally dynamic and responds to life's physical stresses with continual equilibration between bone mass loss and reformation. ...

How zebrafish rebuild the skeleton of amputated fins

Fish, in contrast to humans, have the fascinating ability to fully regenerate amputated organs. The zebrafish (Danio rerio) is a popular ornamental fish. When parts of its tailfin are injured by predators, or are experimentally ...

Osteoblasts are bone idle without Frizzled-9

New research shows that the Wnt receptor Frizzled-9 (Fzd9) promotes bone formation, providing a potential new target for the treatment of osteoporosis. The study appears online on March 14 in The Journal of Cell Biology .

Salmon in hot water

Rearing juvenile salmon at the relatively high temperature of 16 C causes skeletal deformities in the fish. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Physiology investigated both the magnitude and mechanisms of this ...

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Osteoblast

Osteoblasts (from the Greek words for "bone" and "germ" or embryonic) are mononucleate cells that are responsible for bone formation; in essence, osteoblasts are specialized fibroblasts that in addition to fibroblastic products, express bone sialoprotein and osteocalcin.

Osteoblasts produce a matrix of osteoid, which is composed mainly of Type I collagen. Osteoblasts are also responsible for mineralization of this matrix. Zinc, copper and sodium are some of the minerals required in this process. Bone is a dynamic tissue that is constantly being reshaped by osteoblasts, in charge of production of matrix and mineral, and osteoclasts, which remodel the tissue. Osteoblast cells tend to decrease with age, affecting the balance of formation and resorption in the bone tissue.

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