Innervation de l’os

Innervation of bone

Inserm U. 403, Hôpital Édouard-Herriot, Pavillon F, 69437 Lyon Cedex 03, France

Résumé

Le contrôle nerveux du métabolisme osseux est une question qui suscite un intérêt croissant. Cette hypothèse est soutenue par l’évidence histologique d’une riche innervation de l’os, et par un ensemble de données cliniques et expérimentales indiquant que la fonction des cellules osseuses est sous un contrôle neuronal. Les relations entre la nature des neurotransmetteurs sécrétés, l’expression de leurs récepteurs sur les cellules osseuses et les processus de formation et de résorption osseuse devront être établies pour mieux comprendre les mécanismes de contrôle du remodelage osseux par cette voie neuronale.

Abstract

The presence of nerves in relation to the skeleton has been known for many years. More recently, immunoreactivity for nerve markers and neuropeptides has been studied in bone and those studies have shown evidence for a dense and intimate innervation of this tissue. Both sympathetic and sensory nerve fibers are present in bone, and experimental and clinical studies indicate that innervation is important for bone growth, osification, repair and remodeling. A number of recent studies have contributed to the renewed interest and development of this field of research. First with the identification in bone of new neuromediators, in particular glutamate and serotonin, which have receptors on bone cells and affect their function; second with the demonstration, using surgical and chemical sensory and sympathectomy denervation models, that these two neuronal systems control bone cell metabolism; third with the establishment of the existence of a bone mass regulation by the central nervous system. The manipulation of the neuronal pathway in bone may therefore present a major therapeutic impact for treatment of pathologies associated with modifications of bone remodeling, such as osteoporosis.