Objective
Many studies have been currently underway to evaluate the treatment of bone defects using bone marrow
derived-osteogenic cells, which could be obtained by invasive technique. The aim of this study is to investigate the
existence of circulating osteogenic cells in peripheral blood by means of less invasive technique.
Methods
Using monocytes obtained from 20 mL peripheral blood and bone marrow in 4 cases, we performed reverse
transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) with OC (osteocalcin) and ALP (alkaline phosphatase) which are
osteogenic markers and ALP staining. We analysed, using flow cytometry, the relevance between age and number of
osteogenic cells, and compared cell counts of fractured patients to those of diseased patients in 21 cases.
Results
We confirmed the presence of osteogenic cells in peripheral blood. There were no statistical differences in
cell counts between fractured patients and diseased patients, and no relevance between age and number of osteogenic
cells.
Conclusions
There are osteogenic cells in peripheral blood, but further studies carried out in large number and large
amount of blood are required to prove the role of osteogenic cell in bone remodelling and fracture healing.
[Korean Journal of Bone Metabolism, 17(2): 63-73, 2010]
