Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 23, 2026
A 3-D Visualization Technique for Bone Remodeling in a Suture Expansion Mouse Model
Published on: August 18, 2023
Force-induced craniosynostosis via paracrine signaling in the murine sagittal suture
Adam J Oppenheimer1, Samuel T Rhee, Steven A Goldstein
1Section of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
Introduction:
The role of genetic phenomena has been given central importance in the development of craniosynostosis. Proponents have dismissed the role of force as a key etiologic factor. Nonetheless, compressive forces on the developing calvarium have been shown to result in premature suture fusion. The purpose of this study was to determine whether cyclical loading of the murine calvarium could induce suture fusion in cocultured calvarial specimens.
Materials And Methods:
Calvarial coupons from postnatal day 21, B6CBA wild-type mice (n = 24) were harvested and cultured. A custom appliance capable of delivering compressive loads was applied perpendicular to the sagittal suture in vitro. Six coupons were subjected to 0.3 g of force for 30 minutes each day for a total of 14 days. Six additional coupons were cocultured within the same medium. Control groups were devised. Histologic analysis of suture phenotype was performed.
Results:
Sagittal sutures cocultured with unloaded specimens remained patent. In contradistinction, 4 of 6 specimens cocultured with loaded coupons demonstrated craniosynostosis (P = 0.03). Increased osteoid, alkaline phosphatase staining, and bone sialoprotein expression were observed when compared with matched controls.
Discussion:
An in vitro model of force-induced craniosynostosis via paracrine effects has been devised. Premature fusion of the murine sagittal suture was induced in unloaded specimens cocultured with cyclically loaded calvarial coupons. These results implicate that abnormal forces may act through soluble factors to cause premature suture fusion in vitro. The findings support our global hypothesis that epigenetic phenomena play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of nonsyndromic craniosynostosis.
More Related Videos
04:17The Establishment of Calvarial Suture-Bony Composite Defects in Rats: A Standardized Model for Suture-Regenerative Therapy Investigation
Published on: May 10, 2024
07:26Isolation of Whole Cell Protein Lysates from Mouse Facial Processes and Cultured Palatal Mesenchyme Cells for Phosphoprotein Analysis
Published on: April 1, 2022
Related Concept Videos
01:22Sutures of the Skull
Sutures are immobile joints between adjacent bones of the skull. The narrow gap between the bones is filled with dense, fibrous connective tissue that unites the bones. The long sutures located between the skull bones are not straight but instead follow irregular, tightly twisting paths. These twisting lines tightly...
01:14Cranial Bones: Superior and Posterior View
The frontal bone is the single bone that forms the forehead. At its anterior midline, between the eyebrows, there is a slight depression called the glabella. The frontal bone also forms the supraorbital margin of the orbit. Near the middle of this margin is the supraorbital foramen, the opening that provides passage for a sensory nerve to the forehead. The frontal bone is thickened just above each supraorbital margin,...