Introduction to the special issue “The interaction among bone, immunology and vascular biology”

Abstract

Bone enables locomotive activity, the storage of calcium, and the harboring of the hematopoietic stem cells from which blood and immune cells are derived. Bone is a dynamic organ under the active control of bone cells as well as hematopietic cells and the vascular system. The immune, skeletal and vascular systems share various molecules, including cytokines, signaling molecules, transcription factors and membrane receptors. The dynamic interplay among these systems is observed in a variety of diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis and various cancers in addition to normal development. The framework of the osteo-vascular-immune system has become increasingly important for an independent understanding the biology of each system and will help provide a scientific basis for future therapeutic approaches to diseases related to these systems.