title: Osteoimmunology: memorandum for rheumatologists.
abstract: Rapid progress has been made in exploring the connections between the skeletal system and the immune system over the past decade. Bone tissue forms developmental niches for hematopoietic stem cells, and activated immune cells are involved in bone metabolism regulation and are potent mediators of osteoporosis and bone erosion under pathological conditions. The interdisciplinary field of osteoimmunology has emerged to pool the knowledge of the interdependence of these two systems, including the shared ligands and receptors, their crosstalk and interaction, and common intracellular signaling pathways with bidirectional influence. The receptor activator of nuclear factor-kappa B (RANK)/RANK ligand (RANKL)/osteoprotegerin (OPG) triad is the key vinculum, with multifaceted potency, being not only essential for osteoclastogenesis but also critical for lymph node organogenesis and lymphopoiesis as well as for immune regulation. In this review, we summarize the progress in this area, focusing on those aspects of interest concerning rheumatic diseases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology & Clinical Immunology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, the Ministry of Education Key Laboratory, Beijing, 100730, China.
authors.forename: Lidan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, the First People's Hospital of Yueyang, Yueyang, 414000, China.
authors.forename: Linfang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology & Clinical Immunology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, the Ministry of Education Key Laboratory, Beijing, 100730, China. zxpumch2003@sina.com.
authors.forename: Xuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D002450:Cell Communication; D006801:Humans; D007107:Immune System / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D053244:Osteoprotegerin / Q000378:metabolism; D053245:RANK Ligand / Q000378:metabolism; D053246:Receptor Activator of Nuclear Factor-kappa B / Q000378:metabolism; D000072140:Rheumatologists
chemical_list: D053244:Osteoprotegerin; D053245:RANK Ligand; D053246:Receptor Activator of Nuclear Factor-kappa B
keywords: RANKL; bone remodeling; immune cells; osteoclastogenesis; osteoimmunology