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Biomedicines
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Translational and Precision Medicine in Osteoarthritis, Bone Healing and Musculoskeletal...
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Translational and Precision Medicine in Osteoarthritis, Bone Healing and Musculoskeletal Diseases

A special issue of Biomedicines (ISSN 2227-9059). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular and Translational Medicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 1081

Special Issue Editors

Dr. James Vun

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Guest Editor
1. University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust, Burton upon Trent, UK
2. Leeds Institute of Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
Interests: shoulder and elbow surgery; bone healing; mesenchymal stromal cells
Dr. Payal Ganguly

E-Mail
Guest Editor
Leeds Institute of Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
Interests: osteoarthritis; mesenchymal stem/stromal cells; musculoskeletal aging; cellular senescence; 3D invitro modelling; nanomedicine drug delivery
Dr. Heather Elizabeth Owston

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Leeds Institute of Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
Interests: tissue engineering; regenerative medicine

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Musculoskeletal diseases, including osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, fragility fractures, fracture non-union and fracture related infections, remain among the leading cause of disability worldwide. Recent estimates suggest these conditions account for 1.4% of global GDP. This further highlight the importance and need for innovative approaches that bridge fundamental discovery and clinical application.

Rapid advances in genomics, engineering, imaging, and data science are reshaping our understanding of disease heterogeneity, tissue regeneration, and treatment efficacy. These offers the unprecedented opportunities to uncover molecular and cellular mechanisms, refine diagnostic approaches and advance treatment modalities.

With a special focus on osteoarthritis, bone healing and musculoskeletal diseases, this Special Issue aim to showcase research in both clinical and basic science studies that explore disease aetiology, diagnosis, molecular and cellular mechanisms, therapeutic interventions and emerging technologies.

We invite submissions of both clinical and basic science manuscripts. We hope this Special Issue will bring together contributions from scientists and clinicians that will foster interdisciplinary dialogue, stimulate innovation and accelerate the development patient-centred treatment.

Dr. James Vun
Dr. Payal Ganguly
Dr. Heather Elizabeth Owston
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biomedicines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • osteoarthritis
  • non-union
  • osteoporosis
  • fracture related infection
  • fragility
  • bone regeneration
  • mesenchymal stromal cells
  • tissue engineering
  • scaffolds
  • growth factors

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

25 pages, 8560 KB  
Article
Ibandronate Use in Osteoporotic Vertebral Fractures: A Retrospective Clinical Study Integrated with Exploratory Network Pharmacology and Cross-Cohort Transcriptomic Analysis
by Mehmet Albayrak, Ersin Guner, Fatih Ugur and Ibrahim Yilmaz
Biomedicines 2026, 14(6), 1315; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines14061315 - 10 Jun 2026
Viewed by 178
Abstract
Background: Ibandronate is a nitrogen-containing bisphosphonate used in osteoporosis; however, its relationship with vertebral-fracture-related outcomes, pain trajectories, and broader inflammatory–skeletal signaling remains incompletely characterized. Methods: This retrospective observational study included patients with osteoporosis categorized according to ibandronate exposure. The primary outcome was new [...] Read more.
Background: Ibandronate is a nitrogen-containing bisphosphonate used in osteoporosis; however, its relationship with vertebral-fracture-related outcomes, pain trajectories, and broader inflammatory–skeletal signaling remains incompletely characterized. Methods: This retrospective observational study included patients with osteoporosis categorized according to ibandronate exposure. The primary outcome was new vertebral fracture occurrence, and the secondary outcome was change in pain severity assessed using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS). Multivariable regression, sensitivity analyses, and exploratory network-pharmacology, transcriptomic, and molecular docking analyses were performed. Results: Forty patients (20 ibandronate, 20 control) were included. Ibandronate use was associated with numerically lower vertebral fracture occurrence, although this did not reach statistical significance in crude or adjusted analyses. Greater pain reduction was observed in unadjusted analyses but was attenuated after multivariable adjustment, and baseline heterogeneity should be considered when interpreting between-group differences. Radiological outcomes did not differ significantly between groups. Exploratory systems-level analyses identified enrichment patterns involving inflammatory signaling, osteoclast differentiation, cytokine-associated pathways, and skeletal regulatory processes; however, these findings should be interpreted as hypothesis-generating and not as evidence of causal biological mechanisms. Conclusions: In this exploratory, hypothesis-generating study, ibandronate use was associated with trends toward lower vertebral fracture occurrence and greater unadjusted pain improvement, although these findings were attenuated after adjustment. The combined clinical, transcriptomic, and computational observations are compatible with the possibility that inflammatory and skeletal regulatory pathways may intersect within a broader systems-level framework relevant to vertebral-fracture-related outcomes in osteoporosis. However, these findings should not be interpreted as direct mechanistic evidence of ibandronate-specific molecular activity or clinical efficacy. Larger prospective studies integrating clinical, radiological, and mechanistic approaches are required to clarify the biological and clinical relevance of these observations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Translational and Precision Medicine in Osteoarthritis, Bone Healing and Musculoskeletal Diseases)
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18 pages, 2656 KB  
Article
Optimized Centrifugation and Activation Protocol for the Preparation of Plasma Rich in Growth Factors in Pigs
by Michela Maria Taiana, Andrea Massimiliano Nebuloni, Elena De Vecchi, Laura de Girolamo, Giuseppe Michele Peretti, Enrico Ragni and Arianna Barbara Lovati
Biomedicines 2026, 14(3), 640; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines14030640 - 12 Mar 2026
Viewed by 534
Abstract
Background: Cartilage defects remain a clinical challenge due to the limited intrinsic repair capacity of hyaline cartilage, driving increasing interest in blood-derived products, including platelet-rich plasma (PRP). Variability in PRP preparation and activation protocols limits reproducibility and clinical translation, particularly in large animal [...] Read more.
Background: Cartilage defects remain a clinical challenge due to the limited intrinsic repair capacity of hyaline cartilage, driving increasing interest in blood-derived products, including platelet-rich plasma (PRP). Variability in PRP preparation and activation protocols limits reproducibility and clinical translation, particularly in large animal models where species-specific differences are an additional cue. This study aimed to standardize and optimize in pigs a protocol for plasma rich in growth factors (PRGF), a leukocyte-poor PRP, aligned with current human clinical practice. Methods: Whole blood from six female pigs was processed via three centrifugation protocols and activated with varying CaCl2 concentrations to evaluate gelation and morphology. PRGF was characterized through hematological analysis, ELISA-based quantification of soluble factors, and structural imaging of fibrin gel via histology and scanning electron microscopy. Data were further analyzed using protein–protein interaction networks, hierarchical clustering, and comparative human PRGF proteomic profiles. Results: Protocol with 400× g centrifugation followed by 13.3 mM CaCl2 activation achieved the most favorable performance, yielding the highest platelet recovery, effective leukocyte clearance, and consistent formation of a well-organized fibrin network. Porcine activated PRGF showed substantial overlap in detected factors and concentration ranges with human activated PRGF prepared with the same protocol. Conclusions: These findings establish a robust, clinically aligned porcine PRGF protocol and support the pig as a relevant translational model for PRP-based regenerative strategies, providing a reliable platform for preclinical evaluation of cartilage therapies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Translational and Precision Medicine in Osteoarthritis, Bone Healing and Musculoskeletal Diseases)
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