In and out of the bone: can the osteocyte escape skeletal jail and yet regulate mineralization?

An increase in the levels of fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) develops in the early phase of chronic kidney disease (CKD). However, the initial trigger of CKD-mineral and bone disorder (CKD-MBD) is a matter of debate. Fang and associates provide evidence, in a mouse model of early CKD, that osteocytes and osteocyte-like cells play an important role at the earliest stage of CKD-MBD. The osteocytes may become a target of intervention in CKD-MBD.