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J.A. Núñez, A. Goring, B. Javaheri, H. Razi, D. Gomez-Nicola, E. Hesse, A.A. Pitsillides, P.J. Thurner, P. Schneider, C.E. Clarkin:
"Regional diversity in the murine cortical vascular network is revealed by synchrotron x-ray tomography and is amplified with age";
European Cells & Materials, 35 (2018), 281 - 299.

Cortical bone is permeated by a system of pores, occupied by the blood supply and osteocytes. With ageing,
bone mass reduction and disruption of the microstructure are associated with reduced vascular supply.
Insight into the regulation of the blood supply to the bone could enhance the understanding of bone
strength determinants and fracture healing. Using synchrotron radiation-based computed tomography, the
distribution of vascular canals and osteocyte lacunae was assessed in murine cortical bone and the influence
of age on these parameters was investigated. The tibiofibular junction from 15-week- and 10-month-old
female C57BL/6J mice were imaged
post-mortem
. Vascular canals and three-dimensional spatial relationships
between osteocyte lacunae and bone surfaces were computed for both age groups. At 15 weeks, the posterior
region of the tibiofibular junction had a higher vascular canal volume density than the anterior, lateral and
medial regions. Intracortical vascular networks in anterior and posterior regions were also different, with
connectedness in the posterio
r higher than the anterior at 15 weeks. By 10 months, cortices were thinner, with
cortical area fraction and vascular density reduced, but only in the posterior cortex. This provided the first
evidence of age-related effects on murine bone porosity due to the location of the intracortical vasculature.
Targeting the vasculature to modulate bone porosity could provide an effective way to treat degenerative
bone diseases, such as osteoporosis.

http://dx.doi.org/10.22203/eCM.v035a20