Berkeley, CA, USA. New research shows that at microscopic dimensions, the age-related loss of bone quality can be every bit as important as the loss of quantity in the susceptibility of bone to fracturing.

Our bones become more brittle and prone to fracturing as we grow older. It is well established that loss of mass is a major reason for older bones fracturing more readily than younger bones, hence medical treatments have focused on slowing down this loss.

Eindhoven, The Netherlands. Laboratory researchers found a simple way to grow tissue with real muscle structure with endothelial cells that automatically grouped themselves to form new blood vessels, a finding that advances the engineering of thicker muscle tissue that can be implanted in restoration operations.

The research findings appear in the journal Tissue Engineering Part A.