Signalling pathways underlying pulsed electromagnetic fields in bone repair

Aoao Wang; Xinbo Ma; Jiaqi Bian; Zhenrui Jiao; Qiuyi Zhu; Peng Wang; Yantao Zhao

doi:10.3389/fbioe.2024.1333566

Signalling pathways underlying pulsed electromagnetic fields in bone repair

Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2024 Jan 24:12:1333566. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2024.1333566. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Aoao Wang^#¹, Xinbo Ma^#², Jiaqi Bian^#³, Zhenrui Jiao¹, Qiuyi Zhu¹, Peng Wang⁴, Yantao Zhao³

Affiliations

¹ Medical School of Chinese PLA, Beijing, China.
² Department of Chemistry, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China.
³ Senior Department of Orthopaedics, The Fourth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.
⁴ Department of Neurosurgery, The First Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) stimulation is a prospective non-invasive and safe physical therapy strategy for accelerating bone repair. PEMFs can activate signalling pathways, modulate ion channels, and regulate the expression of bone-related genes to enhance osteoblast activity and promote the regeneration of neural and vascular tissues, thereby accelerating bone formation during bone repair. Although their mechanisms of action remain unclear, recent studies provide ample evidence of the effects of PEMF on bone repair. In this review, we present the progress of research exploring the effects of PEMF on bone repair and systematically elucidate the mechanisms involved in PEMF-induced bone repair. Additionally, the potential clinical significance of PEMF therapy in fracture healing is underscored. Thus, this review seeks to provide a sufficient theoretical basis for the application of PEMFs in bone repair.

Keywords: bone regeneration; mechanisms of osteogenesis; osteoblast; osteoclast; pulsed electromagnetic fields; signalling pathway.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This work was funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China (82151312, 82272493). The Beijing Science Nova Program (20220484155). Haidian Frontier Project of Beijing Natural Science Foundation (No. L212067), Capital clinical diagnosis and treatment technology research and transformation application project (Z201100005520060).