Open AccessConcise Review: Stem Cells in Osteoimmunology
Author(s) -
Fierro Fernando A.,
Nolta Jan A.,
Adamopoulos Iannis E.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
stem cells
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.159
H-Index - 229
eISSN - 1549-4918
pISSN - 1066-5099
DOI - 10.1002/stem.2625
Subject(s) - osteoimmunology , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , osteoclast , stem cell , bone remodeling period , osteoblast , bone remodeling , bone resorption , cellular differentiation , immunology , endocrinology , rankl , genetics , in vitro , activator (genetics) , gene
Bone remodeling is a lifelong process in which mature bone tissue is removed from the skeleton by bone resorption and is replenished by new during ossification or bone formation. The remodeling cycle requires both the differentiation and activation of two cell types with opposing functions; the osteoclast, which orchestrates bone resorption, and the osteoblast, which orchestrates bone formation. The differentiation of these cells from their respective precursors is a process which has been overshadowed by enigma, particularly because the precise osteoclast precursor has not been identified and because the identification of skeletal stem cells, which give rise to osteoblasts, is very recent. Latest advances in the area of stem cell biology have enabled us to gain a better understanding of how these differentiation processes occur in physiological and pathological conditions. In this review we postulate that modulation of stem cells during inflammatory conditions is a necessary prerequisite of bone remodeling and therefore an essential new component to the field of osteoimmunology. In this context, we highlight the role of transcription factor nuclear factor of activated T cells cytoplasmic 1 (NFATc1), because it directly links inflammation with differentiation of osteoclasts and osteoblasts. S tem C ells 2017;35:1461–1467