Studying Skeletal Development to Enhance Bone Repair

Abstract
Our knowledge of skeletal development has increased exponentially over the last 20 years due in part to the widespread adoption of new experimental techniques focused on regulating gene expression. Information now available on the signaling pathways and skeletal stem and progenitor cells that interact to form the skeleton has led to new strategies for enhancing bone formation in a variety of clinical settings. During my talk I will discuss osteobiologics currently approved by the FDA or in clinical trials for enhancing bone repair and how we might predict which osteobiologic(s) might be most efficacious in specific clinical settings based on our understanding of skeletal development.

Learning Objectives
1. Multiple signaling pathways interact in precise spatial and temporal patterns during skeletal development.
2. All skeletal stem/progenitor cells are not the same so will not be activated by the same signaling cascades.
3. The local extracellular matrix and resident cells form a niche that influences bone formation and the capacity for regeneration.