Bone From Blood: Circulating Cells Form Bone Outside The Normal Skeleton
Wednesday, August 12, 2009 - 07:15
in Biology & Nature
The accepted dogma has been that bone-forming cells, derived from the body's connective tissue, are the only cells able to form the skeleton. However, new research shows that specialized cells in the blood share a common origin with white blood cells derived from the bone marrow and that these bloodstream cells are capable of forming bone at sites distant from the original skeleton. This work represents the first example of how circulating cells may contribute to abnormal bone formation.