EFFECTS OF ELECTRICAL STIMULATION ON SELECT FUNCTIONS OF BONE CELLS

摘要

The present in vitro study was motivated by scientific literature reports that show enhanced healing of bone fractures in experimental animals in response to electrical stimulation. The underlying cellular-and molecular level mechanisms responsible for new bone formation, however, were not studied at that time. Since then, advances in cell biology, biochemistry and biomedical engineering provided knowledge, models, and instrumentation to investigate these unanswered questions. For this purpose, the present research study chose an interdisciplinary approach and used novel laboratory setups, cellular models, and biochemical and molecular assays. The hypothesis examined was that alternating electric current stimulation affects select functions pertinent to new bone formation, such as proliferation of adult human osteoblasts, and differentiation of adult human mesenchymal stem cells (pluripotent, bone-marrow cells with the potential to differentiate into adipocytes, chondrocytes, and osteoblasts upon appropriate stimulation).