Matrix-enabled mechanobiological modulation of osteoimmunology

Modulation of osteoimmunology is central to recovering the functions of defective and diseased bone. Here, we highlight the roles of material-enabled matrix in regulating osteoimmunological phenomena such as inflammation, bone hemostasis, and regeneration. We provide an overview of the concept of osteoimmunology and matrix-induced mechanobiology, detail the effort to exploit materials with tunable parameters (ligands, stiffness, viscoelasticity, nano/microtopography, and three-dimensionality) to instruct these events, and discuss the mechanotransduction process and mechanisms underlying the matrix-related interactions between immune/inflammatory cells and bone-forming cells. This will help us to understand matrix-related mechanobiological modulation of osteoimmunology and develop materials with tunable matrix properties for bone healing and regeneration.