The contribution of different cell lineages to bone repair: exploring a role for muscle stem cells

An anabolic response driven by osteoblasts is critical for the process of bone healing. Current evidence suggests that these osteoblasts may arise from multiple tissue types and cell lineages. Stem cells present in the bone marrow, periosteum, local soft tissues, vasculature, and/or circulation have been shown to have osteogenic potential. Transplanted cells from these sources have also been shown to incorporate into induced ectopic bone or repaired bone. While these experiments demonstrate the latent capacity of different lineages to assume an osteoblastic phenotype under pro-osteogenic conditions, the actual contribution of the different lineages to various repair situations in vivo remains unclear. This review explores the data arising from different bone formation and repair models. We propose a model suggesting that cells arising from the local tissues, particularly muscle cells, may play an important role in fracture repair under situations where the periosteal and/or bone marrow progenitor populations are depleted.