4. Let’s have a look inside.. If you’re observant, you’ll notice the blue rod going down the shaft of the bone . This is the metal rod that we put in to keep the broken bits together, otherwise the leg will fall to pieces when the mouse tries to run on it!
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6. The same happens here: the chemical signals get less concentrated as you move away from the place of injury
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8. Once the stem cells get to the place of injury, the strong signals there stop them from moving any more and turn into specialised bone-making cells. This is where the fracture was.. callus So, these cells start making a lump of new bone, or what we call a ‘callus’.
9. But the bone is a lot cleverer than people think because it is able to remember what shape it is supposed to be. So over time, it reshapes itself back to its original shape. This is called ‘remodelling’. So remember, the bone is not dead. Far from it, it is very much alive!
10. My group has now found a chemical signal we can inject into the broken mouse bone... ..and speed up healing!
11. Our aim now is to get this to work in humans! Hopefully, this can help our patients get back up and running again in no time!
