Discovery of Bone-Protecting Role of Osteocalcin May Promise New Osteoporosis Therapies

Discovery of Bone-Protecting Role of Osteocalcin May Promise New Osteoporosis TherapiesThe mysterious role of osteocalcin has finally been revealed, claim medical researchers conducting study on bones and fracture prevention. The implications of this latest discovery may presage new strategies and therapeutic treatments for preventing osteoporosis and lowering bone fracture risks. In particular, osteoporosis is considered to be a global pandemic that affects millions of the world’s elderly population and, thus far, resists western medicine’s best attempts to efficiently treat it. If you want to learn more about osteoporosis and other updates, more articles are available here, www.fosamaxclassaction.us The multi-university study group conducted their investigation, which was funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The study found osteocalcin in the properties of bone fractures creating tiny holes in healthy bones, each measuring only 500 atoms in diameter, within the bones mineral structure. Regarding fractures caused by tripping, falling, or force of impact the bones actually changes a pair of joined proteins, osteopontin and osteocalcin, and creates microscopic nanoscale holes in the bones. These holes, called dilatational bands, function as a defense mechanism which helps to prevent further damage to the surrounding bone structure. It was also noted by the researchers that if the force of injury is stronger than the bone structural strength or if the bone lacks either osteopontin, osteocalcin, or both then the bone will be susceptible to fractures. The multi-university study was led by Deepak Vashishth, head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Rensselaer, who gave the first evidence of fracture at the level of the bone’s nanostructure. The other universities partnered with Rensselaer for this study includes Villanova University, the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, and Yale University. The significance of this study is underscored by the recent understanding of the role that osteocalcin, and possibly other proteins, may be responsible for granting bones the ability to resist fractures. Vashishth believes that as osteocalcin has been revealed as the point of fracture, strengthening it would also lead to an overall strengthening of the bones. Osteocalcin is a bone protein first discovered in animals and later in humans when synthesizing vitamin K, but little was understood about it until now. In other research, the abnormal production of this bone protein has been linked with type 2 diabetes as well as conditions involving reproductive health. Vashishth’s continuing study of osteocalcin has yielded the first explanation its role in bone structure and mechanics. Vashishth suggests that further investigation into the efficacy and understanding of osteocalcin and similar proteins may lead to new treatments in osteoporosis and understanding how to prevent fractures. URL Reference: http://www.news-medical.net/news/20121211/Study-shows-how-osteocalcin-plays-asignificant-role-in-bone-strength.aspx