What are osteocytes and canaliculi?

Osteocytes are simply osteoblasts trapped in the matrix that they secrete. They are networked to each other via long cytoplasmic extensions that occupy tiny canals called canaliculi, which are used for exchange of nutrients and waste through gap junctions.

What is the canaliculi in bone?

Small channels (canaliculi) radiate from the lacunae to the osteonic (haversian) canal to provide passageways through the hard matrix. In compact bone, the haversian systems are packed tightly together to form what appears to be a solid mass.

What are canaliculi and what is their function?

osteocytes in small channels called canaliculi. By means of these canaliculi, nutrients and waste products are exchanged to maintain the viability of the osteocyte. Osteocytes are the most abundant type of cell in mature bone tissue. They also are long-lived, surviving as long as the bone they occupy exists.

What is the function of the canaliculi of Osteon bone?

Osteons are cylindrical structures that contain a mineral matrix and living osteocytes connected by canaliculi, which transport blood. They are aligned parallel to the long axis of the bone.

How do osteocytes work?

OSTEOCYTES are cells inside the bone. They also come from osteoblasts. Some of the osteoblasts turn into osteocytes while the new bone is being formed, and the osteocytes then get surrounded by new bone. They are not isolated, however, because they send out long branches that connect to the other osteocytes.

Why do osteocytes form?

Osteocytes form when osteoblasts become buried in the mineral matrix of bone and develop distinct features. Residing within the lacuna of the mineralized bone matrix, osteocytes form dendritic processes that extend out from their cell bodies into spaces known as canaliculi.

Where is Canaliculi found in the body?

In anatomy, a canaliculus is a small canal or duct or passageway in the body. It is used in the following terms: Bone canaliculus. It is a small channel in ossified bone, particularly between the lacunae of ossified bone.

What are the functions of osteocytes?

The potential functions of osteocytes include: to respond to mechanical strain and to send signals of bone formation or bone resorption to the bone surface, to modify their microenvironment, and to regulate both local and systemic mineral homeostasis.

What is the function of a tendon?

A tendon is a fibrous connective tissue which attaches muscle to bone. Tendons may also attach muscles to structures such as the eyeball. A tendon serves to move the bone or structure.

How osteocytes are formed?

Osteocytes are formed when osteoblasts are encased in bone matrix during bone formation. These cells become connected with one another, and with cells outside the mineralized matrix, to create a living network.

What are osteoclasts responsible for?

Osteoclasts are the cells that degrade bone to initiate normal bone remodeling and mediate bone loss in pathologic conditions by increasing their resorptive activity. They are derived from precursors in the myeloid/monocyte lineage that circulate in the blood after their formation in the bone marrow.

What are the canaliculi of a bone osteon?

Canaliculi in bone osteons. Diagram of cross-section of bone osteons showing osteocytes and interconnecting canaliculi. Identifiers. TH. H2.00.03.7.00003. Anatomical terminology. Bone canaliculi are microscopic canals between the lacunae of ossified bone.

What kind of cells are in a canaliculi?

It consists of specialized bone cells, mineralized and unmineralized connective tissue matrix, and spaces including the bone marrow cavity, vascular canals, canaliculi, and lacunae that contain osteocytes.

Why is the osteocyte lacuno-canalicular network important?

The osteocyte lacuno-canalicular network (LCN) is essential for bone remodeling because osteocytes regulate cell recruitment. This has been proposed to occur through liquid-flow-induced shear forces in the canaliculi. Models of the LCN have thus far assumed that it contains canaliculi connecting the osteocyte lacunae.

What is the function of the canaliculi in the lacunae?

The canaliculi are small channels that link together the lacunae as well as having a function of routing nutrients to osteocytes and expelling waste products.