Bone articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    Glucocorticoids (GCs) inhibit bone angiogenesis and affect bone development, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, the authors show that GCs induce vascular cell senescence during bone development by inhibiting angiogenin secretion from osteoclasts, impairing angiogenesis via endothelial Plexin B2, resulting in unpaired bone growth.

    • Xiaonan Liu
    • , Yu Chai
    •  & Mei Wan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The functional relationship between subchondral bone and articular cartilage is unclear. Here, the authors show that transforming growth factor-beta propagates the mechanical impact of subchondral bone on articular cartilage through αV integrin–talin mechanical transduction system in chondrocytes.

    • Gehua Zhen
    • , Qiaoyue Guo
    •  & Xu Cao

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Pelvic radiographs (PXRs) are essential for detecting proximal femur and pelvis injuries in trauma patients, but none of the currently available algorithms can detect all kinds of trauma-related radiographic findings. Here, the authors develop a multiscale deep learning algorithm trained with weakly supervised point annotation.

    • Chi-Tung Cheng
    • , Yirui Wang
    •  & Le Lu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Osteoarthritis is a chronic, heritable disease with no available treatment. Here, the authors show that a validated, rapid-throughput joint phenotyping pipeline detects osteoarthritis in the mouse knee following surgical provocation, in aging and after single gene deletion or point mutation.

    • Natalie C. Butterfield
    • , Katherine F. Curry
    •  & J. H. Duncan Bassett

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Neurofibromatosis type I (NF1) is characterized by prominent skeletal abnormalities mediated in part by aberrant ERK pathway activation due to NF1 loss-of-function. Here, the authors report the MEKK2 is a key mediator of this aberrant ERK activation and that MEKK2 inhibitors, including ponatinib, ameliorate skeletal defects in a mouse model of NF1.

    • Seoyeon Bok
    • , Dong Yeon Shin
    •  & Matthew B. Greenblatt

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Bone marrow adipose tissue (BMAT) comprises over 10% of total fat mass but its systemic metabolic role is unclear. Here, the authors show that BMAT glucose uptake is not insulin or cold responsive; however, BMAT basal glucose uptake is higher than in white adipose tissue or skeletal muscle, underscoring BMAT’s potential to influence systemic glucose homeostasis.

    • Karla J. Suchacki
    • , Adriana A. S. Tavares
    •  & William P. Cawthorn

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Runx2 is essential for tuning the generation of bone from skeletal stem cells (SSCs). Here, the authors demonstrate that the CK2/HAUSP pathway stabilizes RUNX2 protein thereby regulating the commitment of SSCs to osteoprogenitors as well as their subsequent maturation, and that inhibition of this pathway can block heterotopic ossification.

    • Jung-Min Kim
    • , Yeon-Suk Yang
    •  & Jae-Hyuck Shim

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The molecular basis of activin receptor-like kinase 1 (ALK1)-mediated endothelial bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signalling is not fully understood. Here, the authors present crystal structures of the BMP10:ALK1 and prodomain-bound BMP9:ALK1 complexes, providing mechanistic insights into ALK1 signalling specificity.

    • Richard M. Salmon
    • , Jingxu Guo
    •  & Wei Li

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Anti-resorptive bone therapies also inhibit bone formation, as osteoclasts secrete factors that stimulate bone formation by osteoblasts. Here, the authors identify osteoclast-secreted factors that couple bone resorption to bone formation in healthy subjects, and show that osteoclast-derived DPP4 may be a factor coupling bone resorption to energy metabolism.

    • Megan M. Weivoda
    • , Chee Kian Chew
    •  & Sundeep Khosla

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Leflunomide is used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Here, the authors show that effectiveness is limited in patients with higher levels of serum c-reactive protein (CRP). Using animal models, they show that higher CRP induces HIF1a expression, which in turn interferes with Leflunomide signalling, and that effectiveness of the drug is restored when HIF1a is pharmacologically inhibited.

    • Chao Liang
    • , Jie Li
    •  & Aiping Lu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is a common pediatric disease leading to spinal deformities. Here, the authors report GWAS followed by genome-wide meta-analysis in up to 79,211 Japanese individuals, identifying 20 genetic loci for AIS, 14 of which were previously unreported, and perform in vitro validation for rs1978060.

    • Ikuyo Kou
    • , Nao Otomo
    •  & Shiro Ikegawa

  • Article
    | Open Access

    In vivo decorporation of U(VI) from bones is an unsolved challenge because of the formation of stable uranium phosphate complexes. Here, the authors develop a hydroxypyridonone-based ligand with strong uranium complexation and low cytotoxicity. They find this ligand effectively removes uranium from kidney and bones in mice, and is suitable for oral administration.

    • Xiaomei Wang
    • , Xing Dai
    •  & Shuao Wang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Size and shape of bones are important for height and body shape. Here, Styrkarsdottir et al identify 12 loci in a GWAS for bone area derived from DXA scans and show that these loci associate with other bone-related phenotypes including osteoarthritis, height, bone mineral density and risk of hip fracture.

    • Unnur Styrkarsdottir
    • , Olafur A. Stefansson
    •  & Kari Stefansson

  • Article
    | Open Access

    TMCO1 is a recently described endoplasmic reticular Ca2+ channel. Here, the authors show it is important for osteoblast function and bone formation in mice, and identify a novel pathway linking local increases in Ca2+ at the ER surface with the posttranslational modification of RUNX2.

    • Jianwei Li
    • , Caizhi Liu
    •  & Yingxian Li

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Mammalian joints have poor regenerative capacity following amputation. Here, the authors show that in mice, stimulation of the amputation wound with BMP2 and BMP9 stimulates regeneration of a synovial joint that includes bone, cartilage and a synovial cavity.

    • Ling Yu
    • , Lindsay A. Dawson
    •  & Ken Muneoka

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Bone is innervated, and its turnover is affected by sympathetic nerve activity. Here, the authors show that prostaglandin E2, secreted by osteoblasts, activates the EP4 receptor on sensory nerves, inhibiting sympathetic nerve activity and modulating bone formation in mice.

    • Hao Chen
    • , Bo Hu
    •  & Xu Cao

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Estrogen promotes negative energy balance and preserves skeletal physiology. Here the authors show that loss of estrogen signalling after ablating estrogen receptor alpha (ERa) in specific hypothalamic neuronal populations leads to a marked sex-dependent increase in bone mass in female mice.

    • Candice B. Herber
    • , William C. Krause
    •  & Holly A. Ingraham

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Osteocytes reside in a low oxygen environment, but it is not clear if oxygen sensing regulates their function. Here, the authors show that deletion of the oxygen sensor prolyl hydroxylase 2 in osteocytes leads to increased bone mass via regulation of sclerostin, and reduces bone loss in mouse models of osteoporosis.

    • Steve Stegen
    • , Ingrid Stockmans
    •  & Geert Carmeliet

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The periosteum, a tissue lining the bone surface, and the bone marrow are known to contain bone-forming cells. Here the authors show that skeletal stem cells reside in the mouse periosteum, and that periosteal cells have common embryonic origins with bone marrow stromal/stem cells (BMSCs), but are better at bone repair and long-term integration than BMSCs.

    • Oriane Duchamp de Lageneste
    • , Anaïs Julien
    •  & Céline Colnot

  • Article
    | Open Access

    IL-17-producing T cells are protective against infection, but the authors of this article previously showed that these cells also contribute to inflammatory bone destruction. Here they show in the context of periodontitis that microbiota-driven Th17-mediated bone destruction may actually be a physiological rather than a pathological process, as associated tooth loss prevents dissemination of oral bacteria.

    • Masayuki Tsukasaki
    • , Noriko Komatsu
    •  & Hiroshi Takayanagi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Heterotopic ossification (HO) is a painful disease of unknown etiology characterized by extraskeletal bone formation after injury. Here the authors show that TGF-β is increased in HO lesions, where it promotes the early stages of HO pathology, and demonstrate that TGF-β inhibition ameliorates HO in mice.

    • Xiao Wang
    • , Fengfeng Li
    •  & Xu Cao

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva is a severe disorder characterized by heterotopic ossification, and is caused by mutations in ACVR1. Here, the authors show that expression of mutant ACVR1 in fibro/adipogenic progenitors recapitulates disease progression, and that this can be halted by systemic inhibition of activin A in mice.

    • John B. Lees-Shepard
    • , Masakazu Yamamoto
    •  & David J. Goldhamer

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) are a main class of metabolites derived from fermentation of dietary fibre in the intestine. Here, the authors show that dietary administration of SCFA is associated with inhibition of osteoclast differentiation, increased bone mass, and reduced pathological bone loss in mice.

    • Sébastien Lucas
    • , Yasunori Omata
    •  & Mario M. Zaiss

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Osteoclasts are involved in arthritis, and their differentiation depends on RANKL signaling. The author show that the ROS-scavenging protein DJ-1 negatively regulates RANKL signaling and that its ablation increases osteoclast numbers and exacerbates bone damage in mouse models of arthritis.

    • Hyuk Soon Kim
    • , Seung Taek Nam
    •  & Wahn Soo Choi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Bone loss is common in patients with diabetes, but the underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms are unclear. Here the authors show high succinate levels in mice with type 2 diabetes and that succinate can signal through succinate receptor 1 on osteoclasts to induce bone resorption.

    • Yuqi Guo
    • , Chengzhi Xie
    •  & Xin Li

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Osteoclasts are bone resorptive cells and an attractive target to treat diseases characterized by excessive bone loss, but little is known about osteoclast inhibition. Here the authors identify Gα13 as an intracellular inhibitor of osteoclastogenesis that can prevent bone loss in mice via Akt activation and inhibition of RhoA signalling.

    • Mengrui Wu
    • , Wei Chen
    •  & Yi-Ping Li

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Bone development and vascularization are coupled events that share many molecular mechanisms. Here the authors identify osteoblast-secreted Cxcl9 as an inhibitory regulator of angiogenesis and osteogenesis, and show that mTORC1 signaling and STAT1 are critical upstream mediators of the cytokine expression.

    • Bin Huang
    • , Wenhao Wang
    •  & Xiaochun Bai

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