Kinetics of osteoclasts and their nuclei in evolving secondary Haversian systems

A study of osteoclast and osteoclast nuclear population kinetics within evolving secondary osteons was undertaken in young adult Beagle dogs. Autoradiographs of serial longitudinal rib biopsy sections taken from 1 hour to 15 days after tritiated thymidine injection were analysed as to the time and the rate of appearance of the labelled nuclei within the osteoclasts and their nuclei. Such systems contained an average of nine osteoclasts, each containing an average of nine nuclei. Labelled osteoclast nuclei first appeared within 24 hours, peaked at 10% at 4 days, and declined to 1% or less after 11.5 days more. Thus, the entry rate of new nuclei into (and their exit from) the population of osteoclast nuclei under steady state conditions approximates 8% per day. Therefore, the total mononuclear osteoclast population may be viewed as divided into functional units, i.e. osteoclasts. From the ratio of the osteoclast nuclei in the cutting cone to the number of osteoblasts in the closing cone (as well as from their rates of resorption and formation), it was deduced that the osteoclast per nucleus is approximately 20-40 times more efficient than the osteoblast. Because of the intrinsically different efficiencies and life spans of these two cell types, the rates of resorption and formation within evolving Haversian systems and the amounts of bone ultimately resorbed and formed by the system, are determined by the rate and duration of the respective precursor cell proliferation. It is at this level that factors which control the bone remodelling and balance must operate.