INTERBONE · The interplay among bone cells, matrices and systems

It is now clear that there are multiple regulatory pathways that orchestrate the interplay between the skeleton and other organs to maintain the correct homeostasis of the body. INTERBONE is an interdisciplinary network for international exchange of scientists which will study the central role of the skeleton in three areas of health. INTERBONE will coordinate research and training activities between 5 institutions in Italy, Netherlands, Brazil, India and USA each with highly complementary and distinctive expertise. Work on energy metabolism will build on previous research findings that suggest a link between bone derived signals, glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity. The network will also investigate the role of candidate secreted factors in the disruption of hematopoiesis in the development of leukemia. These activities will utilize new conditional knockout mouse models. Research on fracture repair and tissue regeneration will address biomaterials interactions with cells, and stimulation of angiogenesis in fracture repair with biophysical approaches. The planned research collaboration is supported by a programme of staff exchanges, training and networking activities. The network will involve regular meetings integrated with established international conferences in bone-related research, which will support networking and dissemination, a workshop on tissue regeneration and angiogenesis, and a programme of webinars. The staff to be exchanged will comprise 13 ESRs and 7 ERs who will benefit greatly from the transfer of knowledge and international experience. INTERBONE also makes a contribution to the opening of the European Research Area to international cooperation, and interaction with three of Europe’s strategic global partners in this emerging interdisciplinary area of research.