How bone cells called osteocytes respond to anabolic osteoporosis treatments
Official title: The role of the osteocyte in responses to osteoporosis anabolic treatment in humans and mice
Funded at Massachusetts General Hospital · NIH-11260284 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work looks at how bone-building osteoporosis drugs change osteocytes in postmenopausal women and in mice.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Massachusetts General Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | January 1, 2023 |
| Project end | December 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $367,386 |
| NIH project number | 5P50AR080596-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11260284 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are postmenopausal women with osteoporosis who are receiving or eligible for anabolic therapy and willing to provide bone biopsy samples and follow-up visits.
✕Less likely to help
People without osteoporosis, men, or those unwilling/unable to have bone biopsies or to travel to study visits may not be eligible or directly benefit.
What this research studies
If you take part, the team will analyze bone biopsy samples from postmenopausal women who receive anabolic osteoporosis drugs and compare early versus later treatment time points. They will also use mouse models with specific changes in osteocyte signaling to mirror and probe human findings. The project uses detailed 3-D imaging of bone, molecular analyses of osteocytes, and bioinformatics to combine the human and mouse results. Together these approaches aim to reveal how osteocytes drive the bone-building response and why that response declines over time.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could identify new targets or strategies to make bone-building treatments work better and longer, potentially lowering fracture risk.
How similar studies have gone: Mouse studies have shown osteocytes are key to anabolic responses, but applying detailed human biopsy and comparative analyses is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Baron, Roland E — Massachusetts General Hospital
- Study coordinator: Baron, Roland E
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.