REVIEW article
Front. Physiol.
Sec. Skeletal Physiology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fphys.2025.1629273
This article is part of the Research TopicThe Homeostasis and Perturbations of the Skeletal System and Surrounding EnvironmentView all 3 articles
Osteocytes Function as Biomechanical Signaling Hubs Bridging Mechanical Stress Sensing and Systemic Adaptation
Provisionally accepted
- Department of Orthopedics, the Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Gusu School, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, China
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Osteocytes, the most abundant bone cells embedded within mineralized matrix, are pivotal regulators of skeletal and systemic homeostasis. Recent advances highlight their mechanotransductive roles via mechanosensors, enabling detection of mechanical stimuli and conversion into biochemical signals to orchestrate bone remodeling. Beyond bone, osteokines derived from osteocytes engage themselves in bidirectional crosstalk with distant organs or tissues-modulating brain, liver, kidney, muscle, adipose tissue, nerve, blood vessel, and cancer. Hormonal and metabolic effects further integrate osteocyte activity into systemic regulation, while pathologies like diabetes or mechanical unloading disrupt their viability and signaling. Emerging evidence positions osteocytes as central hubs in interorgan networks, with neuron-like morphology enhancing their mechanosensing and communicative capacity.Understanding osteocyte-centric regulatory axes offers novel insights into bonerelated diseases and systemic homeostasis.
Keywords: Osteocyte, crosstalk, mechanotranduction, mechanosensor, endocrine
Received: 16 May 2025; Accepted: 04 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Ma, Jin, Lv, Xu, Xin and Zhang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Yuze Ma, Department of Orthopedics, the Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Gusu School, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, China
Junqiang Zhang, Department of Orthopedics, the Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Gusu School, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, China
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