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The primary responsibility of the skeleton is to withstand loadbearing. Bone is strong, it is stiff, it is tough. Bone can withstand extremely high loads, and will remain strong even following several million cycles of load.

There are two categories of bone cells. Osteoclasts are in the first category. They resorb (dissolve) the bone. The other category is the osteoblast family, which consists of osteoblasts that form bone, osteocytes that help maintain bone, and lining cells that cover the surface of the bone.
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During childhood, the long bones (in the arms, legs, and back) grow at the ends of the bones, whereas the flat bones (such as the skull) have a different pattern of growth. Adult bone actually continues to expand, although very slowly. Bone also continually undergoes remodeling, replacing old bone with...

Bone, the material that makes vertebrates distinct from other animals, has evolved over several hundred million years to become a remarkable tissue. Bone is a material that has the same strength as cast iron, but achieves this while remaining as light as wood.

Mature bone is composed of proteins and minerals. Approximately 60% the weight of the bone is mineral, mainly calcium and phosphate. The rest is water and matrix, which is formed before the mineral is deposited, and can be considered the scaffolding for the bone. About 90% of the matrix proteins...

Hormones are either small proteins (peptide hormones) or organic chemicals. The "classic" hormones are made in glands and travel to target organs via the bloodstream. Many other local hormones are made by one kind of cell, secreted into the surrounding fluid, to affect another kind of cell - - -...

Flash Movie display explaining the pathophysiology of hypercalcuria, osteopenia and the effect of thiazides

This Classic article is a translation by M.O. Heller, W.R. Taylor, N. Aslanidis, and Georg N. Duda of the original work by Julius Wolff, Zur Lehre von der Fracturenheilung (supplemental materials are available with the online version of CORR).
The classic: on the theory of fracture healing. 1873. Wolff J. Clin Orthop Relat...

Topics in the OrthoBullets Basic Science Section are displayed in the left hand panel. The initial topic is Types of Bone

The purpose of this article is to present a general overview of tendon structure and function, starting with a discussion of biochemical and cellular tendon composition. For a full review of tendon biology, biochemistry, and biomechanics, a list of papers is provided at the end of this discourse.

Overview of bone structure, physiology, and function. Project of the Education Committee of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).