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The role of endothelial‐mesenchymal transition in heterotopic ossification
Author(s) -
Medici Damian,
Olsen Bjorn R
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of bone and mineral research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.882
H-Index - 241
eISSN - 1523-4681
pISSN - 0884-0431
DOI - 10.1002/jbmr.1691
Subject(s) - heterotopic ossification , mesenchymal stem cell , transition (genetics) , medicine , anatomy , chemistry , pathology , biochemistry , gene
Heterotopic ossification (HO) is a process by which bone forms in soft tissues, in response to injury, inflammation, or genetic disease. This usually occurs by initial cartilage formation, followed by endochondral ossification. A rare disease called fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP) allows this mechanism to be induced by a combination of genetic mutation and acute inflammatory responses. FOP patients experience progressive HO throughout their lifetime and form an ectopic skeleton. Recent studies on FOP have suggested that heterotopic cartilage and bone is of endothelial origin. Vascular endothelial cells differentiate into skeletal cells through a mesenchymal stem cell intermediate that is generated by endothelial‐mesenchymal transition (EndMT). Local inflammatory signals and/or other changes in the tissue microenvironment mediate the differentiation of endothelial‐derived mesenchymal stem cells into chondrocytes and osteoblasts to induce HO. We discuss the current evidence for the endothelial contribution to heterotopic bone formation. © 2012 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.