An overview on osteogenic differentiation process: Minimum essential information for bone tissue engineering

Abstract

Bone tissue engineering is a new and modern strategy that serves for repairing major bone defects. Three essential elements are involved in bone tissue engineering: a scaffold, a cell source that can convert into bone cells and growth factors. In order to develop new and original biomaterials with high compatibility it is necessary to fully understand osteoblastogenesis. Osteoblasts and osteoclasts are the two types of cells involved in the formation of bone tissue. Osteoblasts are cells responsible for bone growth and for synthesizing bone matrix, whereas osteoclasts function in bone resorbtion. There are some osteogenic markers that osteoblasts are able to produce during bone formation, that have an important role in the processes of migration, proliferation and differentiation. Also, the differentiation process is governed by three major signaling pathways: Wnt, Hedgehog and Notch, which have the role to regulate osteogenesis by controlling proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis. This review aims to synthesize the most important information known so far regarding the main stages and markers of osteogenesis, as well as the main biomaterials, major cell types and specific osteogenic inducers involved in bone tissue engineering. Moreover, this review can serve as a guideline for further applications concerning this subject.