S keletal tissue is exposed to mechanical forces throughout a vertebrate life span, and bone mass is adjusted in response, either absorbing existing skeletal material or synthesising new bone in a site-specific manner. The precise cellular signalling mechanisms by which bone synthesis is controlled within developing osteoblasts and progenitor cells remains undefined. The process is likely to in...

Differentiated osteoblasts are polarized in regions of bone deposition, demonstrate extensive cell interaction and communication, and are responsible for bone formation and quality. Type XII collagen is a fibril-associated collagen with interrupted triple helices and has been implicated in the osteoblast response to mechanical forces. Type XII collagen is expressed by osteoblasts and localizes ...

AIMS To analyse osteoblast function in 153 cases of established osteoporosis as previous work has indicated that osteoporosis is a heterogeneous condition characterised by different patterns of osteoclast and osteoblast dysfunction. METHODS Histomorphometric data from 153 cases with established osteoporosis was used to analyse osteoblast function, using the following parameters: osteoblast nu...

PURPOSE This study aimed to explore if initiation of biomimetic apatite nucleation can be used to enhance osteoblast response to biodegradable tissue regeneration composite membranes. MATERIALS AND METHODS Bioactive thermoplastic composites consisting of poly(ε-caprolactone/DL-lactide) and bioactive glass (BAG) were prepared at different stages of biomimetic calcium phosphate deposition by im...

During skeletal development, osteoblasts produce large amounts of extracellular matrix proteins and must therefore increase their secretory machinery to handle the deposition. The accumulation of unfolded protein in the endoplasmic reticulum induces an adoptive mechanism called the unfolded protein response (UPR). We show that one of the most crucial UPR mediators, inositol-requiring protein 1α...

The use of synthetic hydroxyapatite as bone substitute calls for the knowledge of the influence on adjacent cells. The aim of this study was to investigate the proteins with differential protein expression levels in the proteome of human osteoblast cell line incubated separately with various nano sized hydroxyapatite powders with different shapes and chemical compositions using iTRAQ-coupled 2D...

The established function of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) is to promote thyroid follicle development and hormone secretion. The osteoporosis associated with hyperthyroidism is traditionally viewed as a secondary consequence of altered thyroid function. We provide evidence for direct effects of TSH on both components of skeletal remodeling, osteoblastic bone formation, and osteoclastic bone ...

The last 5 yr have witnessed major progress in skeleton biology. One of these areas of progress has been the partial elucidation of the transcriptional mechanisms of osteoblast differentiation and their conservation between mouse and human. Cbfal, or runx2, a homolog of the Drosophila Runt protein serves both as the earliest transcriptional regulator of osteoblast differentiation and as control...

Over-production of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) will lead to human osteoblast dysfunction and apoptosis, causing progression of osteoporosis and osteonecrosis. NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) is a well-characterized anti-oxidant signaling. Cullin 3 (Cul3) ubiquitin E3 ligase dictates Nrf2 degradation. We demonstrate that microRNA-455 ("miR-455") is a putative Cul3-targeting microRNA. Forced-expressio...