@article {10158,
	title = {Remodeling in bone without osteocytes- Billfish challenge bone structure-function paradigms},
	journal = {PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA},
	volume = {111},
	number = {45},
	year = {2014},
	pages = {16047-16052},
	abstract = {A remarkable property of tetrapod\&nbsp;bone\&nbsp;is its ability to detect and remodel areas where damage has accumulated through prolonged use. This process, believed vital to the long-term health of\&nbsp;bone, is considered to be initiated and orchestrated by\&nbsp;osteocytes, cells within the\&nbsp;bone\&nbsp;matrix. It is therefore surprising that most extant fishes (neoteleosts) lack\&nbsp;osteocytes, suggesting their bones are not constantly repaired, although many species exhibit long lives and high activity levels, factors that should induce considerable fatigue damage with time. Here, we show evidence for active and intense\&nbsp;remodeling\&nbsp;occurringin\&nbsp;the anosteocytic, elongated rostral bones of billfishes (e. g., swordfish, marlins). Despite lackingosteocytes, this tissue exhibits a striking resemblance to the mature\&nbsp;bone\&nbsp;of large mammals, bearing structural features (overlapping secondary osteons) indicating intensive tissue repair, particularly\&nbsp;in\&nbsp;areas where high loads are expected.\&nbsp;Billfish\&nbsp;osteons are an order of magnitude smaller\&nbsp;in\&nbsp;diameter than mammalian osteons, however, implying that the nature of damage\&nbsp;in\&nbsp;this\&nbsp;bone\&nbsp;may be different. Whereasbillfish\&nbsp;bone\&nbsp;material is as stiff as mammalian\&nbsp;bone\&nbsp;(unlike the\&nbsp;bone\&nbsp;of other fishes), it is able to withstand much greater strains (relative deformations) before failing. Our data show that fish\&nbsp;bone\&nbsp;can exhibit far more complex structure and physiology than previously known, and is apparently capable of localized repair evenwithout\&nbsp;the\&nbsp;osteocytes\&nbsp;believed essential for this process. These findings\&nbsp;challenge\&nbsp;the unique and primary role of\&nbsp;osteocytes\&nbsp;in\&nbsp;bone\&nbsp;remodeling, a basic tenet of\&nbsp;bone\&nbsp;biology, raising the possibility of an alternative mechanism driving this process.},
	url = {http://www.pnas.org/content/111/45/16047},
	author = {Atkins, Ayelet and Dean, Mason N. and Habegger, Maria Laura and Motta, Phillip J. and Ofer, Lior and Repp, Felix and Shipov, Anna and Weiner, Steve and Currey, John D. and Ron Shahar}
}
