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Updated: May 24, 2026

A RANKL-based Osteoclast Culture Assay of Mouse Bone Marrow to Investigate the Role of mTORC1 in Osteoclast Formation
Published on: March 15, 2018
Osteocyte RANKL: new insights into the control of bone remodeling
Jinhu Xiong1, Charles A O'Brien
1Center for Osteoporosis and Metabolic Bone Diseases, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72205, USA.
Abstract:
The idea that osteoblasts, or their progenitors, support osteoclast formation by expressing the cytokine receptor activator of NFkB ligand (RANKL) is a widely held tenet of skeletal biology. Two recent studies provide evidence that osteocytes, and not osteoblasts or their progenitors, are the major source of RANKL driving osteoclast formation in cancellous bone. The goal of this review is to highlight the results of these new studies and discuss their implications for our understanding of bone remodeling.
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