メカニカルストレスと骨細胞が産生するRANKL

抄録

In the late 1980s, it was found that receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL) is expressed by osteoblasts has a crucial role in osteoblastogenesis, which had been a dogma for long. Later studies, however, have revealed that osteocytes functions as the major source of RANKL in many biological processes, including unloading and unloading onto the bone. Osteocytes are known as a mechanosensor in the bone tissue and to respond to mechanical stimuli by expressing various molecules, such as RANKL, Sclerostin (Scl) and insulin–like growth factor (IGF)-1. These cells employ cell surface molecules and intracellular signaling molecules as mechanosensors and mechanotransducers. Mechanosensors detects the flow of tissue fluid and the strain of bone matrix. These sensors then mediate intracellular signals using mechanotransducers, resulting in the regulation of the expression of effector molecules. Although many molecules have found as such sensors and transducers, there remains room for investigation. In this session, I would like to overview of the recent findings on mechanobiology of the bone, focusing on osteocyte RANKL.