B2B partners at the University of Basel have recently released a review article highlighting recent discoveries about the exquisite regulatory role of blood vessels in bone development and repair.
As highlighted by our collaborators Andrea Banfi and Nunzia Di Maggio from the Cell and Gene Therapy Laboratory at the Basel University Hospital and the University of Basel, blood vessels in the proximity of the main site of longitudinal growth of the long bones features a specialized endothelium that regulates the proliferation and differentiation of bone cells through the secretion of molecular signals.

Furthermore, it is a hub for the bidirectional molecular crosstalk between the different cell populations of the bone microenvironment. These vessels are a key target for current approaches aiming at coupling the formation of blood vessels and bone for bone repair. Open questions remain about their presence and feature in not stereotyped tissues, like engineered bone grafts, and the opportunities for their clinical stimulation by pharmacological treatments.