Hsiao Hsin Sung Hsieh, DDS

University of Michigan

Effects of sclerostin antibody on the peri-implant bone in an osteogenesis imperfecta mouse model

Dr. Hsieh is a junior faculty member in the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Department at the University of Michigan. She completed dentistry, OMFS residency and a master’s degree in genetics at the University of Chile. Clinically, she works with vulnerable and underserved populations with poor oral health, most of whom are suffering a certain degree of low bone mass disorder caused by genetic, metabolic or chemical derangement.  The success of their oral rehabilitation depends on the quantity and quality of the alveolar bone. Dr. Hsieh’s research project is focused on the mechanism of bone regeneration induced by a novel anabolic drug, the sclerostin antibody, in an osteogenesis imperfecta mouse model.

Abstract:

Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is a heterogeneous group of bone disorders resulting in generalized osteoporosis of the skeleton. Clinical studies have shown a higher risk of partial or total edentulism in OI patients. The edentulism, in the general population, are treated preferentially with dental implants. Implants have been proven to be a safe procedure with low failure rate, although success depends largely on the quality and quantity of the available bone in the remaining alveolar ridge. Surgeons tend to disregard implants among OI patients based on the assumption that poor bone quality inherent to OI may have detrimental effects on mandible bone healing.  Recent experiments have shown that sclerostin, a small osteocyte-derived glycoprotein expressed by the SOST gene, plays a crucial role in the inhibition of bone formation by inhibiting Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Subjects with mutations in the SOST gene have increased bone mineral density and low fracture risk. Consequently, anabolic sclerostin antibodies (SclAb) have been developed that increase bone formation and bone strength. Recent studies have shown that systemic delivery of SclAb leads to acceleration of the peri-implant bone formation rate and increases pull-out strength of implants on normally loaded and unloaded long bones. If similar findings were to be observed in the mandible of the OI model, they might lead to a new strategy to improve the peri-implant osseointegration in OI and other low bone mass disorders. We aim to determine the effect of systemic delivery of SclAb on the peri-implant bone formation and implant fixation strength across in an OI mouse model.