Osteonectin/SPARC/BM40 [MD180]

Bone matrix consists of collagen and non-collagenous proteins. Osteonectin, a 32-kD calcium-binding glycoprotein, is found in a variety of cell types, which include osteoblastic epithelial cells and fibroblasts. In bone tissue, this glycoprotein is present in active osteoblasts and young osteocytes, and it is involved in the early steps of mineralization of skeletal tissue. Osteonectin is a recognized differentiation marker of normal osteogenic cells.The latter represents about 10% of the total protein content of bone. Osteonectin is one of the non-collagenous components and is bone-specific due to its biochemical properties. Osteonectin is a useful biochemical marker for bone-related tumors. Thus, osteonectin antibody can be used to demonstrate the presence of osteonectin in active osteoblasts and osteoprogenitor cells as well as in young osteocytes.