In breaking news, researchers at the Garvan Institute in Sydney have identified a brand-new type of bone cell, which could change the way we treat osteoporosis and other skeletal diseases, dubbing their discovery an ‘osteomorph’.

The research team was originally investigating osteoclasts — the cells responsible for bone resorption — under intravital imaging technology when they noticed something unexpected.

Instead of undergoing apoptosis, like previously believed, the osteoclasts actually split up into smaller daughter cells — osteomorphs — and then fused back together to form new osteoclasts.

“This process of ‘cellular recycling’ represents a paradigm shift in our thinking and opens different lines of research into this new cell type and how it regulates bone homeostasis,” said Professor Tri Phan, head of the Intravital Microscopy and Gene Expression Lab at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research.