Rossi, Francesca & Picone, Giovanna & Cappadone, Concettina & Sorrentino, Andrea & Columbaro, Marta & Farruggia, Giovanna & Catelli, Emilio & Sciutto, Giorgia & Prati, Silvia & Oliete, Robert & Pasini, Alice & Pereiro, Eva & Iotti, Stefano & Malucelli, Emil. (2023). Shedding Light on Osteosarcoma Cell Differentiation: Impact on Biomineralization and Mitochondria Morphology. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 24. 8559. 10.3390/ijms24108559.
Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary malignant bone tumor and its etiology has recently been associated with osteogenic differentiation dysfunctions. OS cells keep a capacity for uncontrolled proliferation showing a phenotype similar to undifferentiated osteoprogenitors with abnormal biomineralization. Within this context, both conventional and X-ray synchrotron-based techniques have been exploited to deeply characterize the genesis and evolution of mineral deposition in a human OS cell line (SaOS-2) exposed to an osteogenic cocktail for 4 and 10 days. A partial restoration of the physiological biomineralization, culminating with the formation of hydroxyapatite, was observed 10 days after treatment together with a mitochondria-driven mechanism for calcium transportation within the cell. Interestingly, during differentiation, mitochondria showed a change in morphology from elongated to rounded, indicating a metabolic reprogramming of OS cells possibly linked to an increase in glycolysis contribution to energy metabolism. These findings add a dowel to the genesis of OS giving new insights on the development of therapeutic strategies able to restore the physiological mineralization in OS cells.