Sarah Sevener
Pronouns: she/her
Research Mentor(s): Yuji Mishina
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Biological and Material Sciences / Dentistry
Program:
Authors: Sarah Sevener, Yuji Mishina, Haichun Pan
Session: Session 5: 2:40 pm – 3:30 pm
Poster: 96
Abstract
A study was undertaken in order to determine if there are two subclasses of osteoclasts present in bone formation: one type that actively resorbs bone, and another that kills osteoblasts, in turn halting bone production. Our previous investigations using fixed bone sections and live images using mouse calvarial bones strongly suggest this hypothesis. Osteoclast activity that resorbs bones has been associated with a low pH environment, thus, we hypothesized that two subclasses of osteoclasts can be differentially visualized on bone sections using a pH sensor that shows red fluorescence when the pH is low. We expect that osteoclasts apart from osteoblasts will be red and these close to osteoblasts will show no fluorescence when treated with the pH sensor. Young mice were injected with a pH sensor 4-6 hours before the harvesting of the bones. The harvested bones were then sectioned, without removal of minerals, and analyzed and images were taken. This research is still in progress, and significant results haven’t been found yet. We are in the process of slightly revising the methods and imaging techniques to produce more reliable results. While it is too early to make distinct conclusions about determining if there are two types of osteoclasts, we are hopeful that the results will provide information that can aid in creating a drug that slows the progress of osteoporosis.
