| [ Summary ] |
It has been proposed that osteocytes sense mechanical stress on bone tissue. Several factors including excessive or lack of mechanical stress on bone tissue, deficiencies of sex steroids and glucocorticoids were shown to induce apoptosis of osteocytes. Apoptosis of osteocytes triggers bone remodeling and impairs the adaptation of bone to mechanical stress. These changes are postulated to cause fragility in bones. It is possible that apoptosis of osteocytes plays an important role in the development of several metabolic bone diseases such as glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis, glucocorticoid-induced osteonecrosis and involutional osteoporosis. It is important that a clinically viable method be established to evaluate osteocytic apoptosis in the future. |