Why Bones Grow Where Muscles Ought to Be

Scientists have been baffled, until recently, about why bones grow on injured muscles.

Researchers from the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have now found the mechanism behind the abnormal bone growth known as heterotopic ossification.

Research Provides Clues For Abnormal Bone Growth Prevention and Treatment
For many people, injuring a muscle through an accident like falling off a bike or having surgery can result in a serious complication. Their muscles grow bones.

They found that a neuropeptide in the brain called 'Substance P', or SP, appears to trigger the formation of the extraskeletal bone, reports the Discovery News.

People may experience heterotopic ossification after recovering from injury or may have it from birth.

Though there is no way to prevent or know when a person will develop the condition, scientists now have a starting point to develop drugs that could help treat the problem.

New Molecular Target To Tackle Abnormal Bone Growth
US researchers have come up with a possible molecular target for tackling abnormal bone growth. Sometimes injured muscles start growing bones.

Approximately 1 person out of every 2 million people worldwide is born with a permanent type of the condition called fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP), which causes muscles to consistently produce bone, especially when a person is injured or sick.

The researchers found high levels of SP, in both FOP patients and individuals who developed heterotopic ossification.

Way to Stop Excessive Bone Growth Following Trauma or Surgery Identified
Excessive bone growth, also known as heterotopic ossificiation (HO), affects up to 70 percent of soldiers who are severely wounded during combat, a recent United States Army study has found.

By studying 16 tissue samples from patients living with heterotopic ossification and FOP, they noticed a spike in the compound. They also compared the samples with four male controls.

In other experiments, they discovered that 'knocking' out the gene that produces SP in transgenic mice lowered their chances of acquiring the condition.

Scientists Working On Treatment For 'Abnormal Bone Growth'
Scientists are working towards finding a treatment for heterotopic ossification, an abnormality, which develops among marines and other military personnel.

The study is published in the Journal of Cellular Biochemistry.

Source-ANI