Bone Abstracts

Microgravity causes adverse health problems to astronauts during space flight, especially to bone, heart, and muscles. The vascular system plays a central role in various organs and the skeletal tissues. This new environment makes vascular adaptation difficult. Nitric oxide plays an essential role in the vascular system by modulating basal vascular tone. An alteration of NO metabolism or bioavailability has been thought to be one of the main factors for vascular disorders. Res...

Although the heavy metal pollutant cadmium (Cd) is a well known teratogen, the mechanism behind Cd mediated teratogenicity is still unclear and it mainly targets the bone development. Previously we and other groups reported on the protective role of nitric oxide (NO), a key signaling molecule in the embryonic developmental process, against thalidomide and other teratogenic assaults also NO is considered to be a vital signaling molecule in the regulation of bone formation. The ...

Angiogenesis and osteogenesis are tightly linked and dependent on each other. Lipocalin 2 (LCN2) is a mechanoresponding adipokine, strongly upregulated in osteogenic cells subjected to microgravity (0.08–0.008 g), in which it impairs osteogenesis and upregulates the osteoclastogenic cytokine, RANKL. We investigated the role of LCN2 in the crosstalk between angiogenesis and osteogenesis in simulated microgravity conditions as a model of mechanical unloading. Mouse and huma...