Within the Open Competition Domain Science-XS a grant was awarded to Silvia Mihaila from Utrecht University for an in vitro model of osteocytes remodeling activity in chronic diseases.
In the remodeling process, old bone breaks down and new bone gets built. Osteocytes, the major cells residing in bone, are the master regulators of bone remodeling. In certain diseases, such as chronic kidney disease (CKD), bone remodeling is disturbed resulting in weak and brittle bones. However, little is known on why and how osteocytes are affected by the disease. In this project we propose the development of an in vitro model of osteocytes activity in CKD-specific conditions. We believe this model will provide insights in osteocytes biology in CKD and will aid in the development of potential therapeutic targets.
