Solute Transport in the Bone Lacunar-Canalicular System (LCS)

Solute transport in the lacunar-canalicular system (LCS) plays important roles in osteocyte metabolism and cell-cell signaling. This review will summarize recent studies that establish pericellular matrix (PCM), discovered inside the LCS, as a crucial regulator of solute transport in bone. Utilizing confocal imaging and mathematical modeling, recent studies successfully quantified molecular diffusion and convection in the LCS as well as the size-dependent sieving effects of the PCM, leading to the quantification of the effective PCM fiber spacing (10 to 17 nm) in murine adult bones. Perlecan/HSPG2, a large linear proteoglycan, was identified to be an essential PCM component. The PCM-filled LCS is bone’s chromatographic column, where fluid/solute transport to and from the osteocytes is regulated. The chemical composition, deposition rate, and turnover rate of the osteocyte PCM should be further defined to better understand osteocyte physiology and bone metabolism.