# BONE PROTEINS--CHEMISTRY/SYNTHESIS/TISSUE LOCALIZATION

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR HOUSTON · 1987 · $143,329

## Abstract

The fundamental hypothesis on which these studies is based is that
non-collagenous proteins (NCPs) of mineralized connective tissues
are involved in the formation of the tissues.  Few of the NCPs of
bone have been thoroughly studied and their functions are
unknown; thus this hypothesis has not been adequately tested.  A
number of uncharacterized proteins are found in the calcified
matrix of bone and many of them are synthesized and secreted by
osteoblasts.  The long term objective of this proposed research is
to isolate uncharacterized proteins that are made by osteoblasts
and are found in bone, and to perform experiments that would
help delineate their properties and functions.  The specific aims
are:

1.  To purify several proteins present in bone and synthesized by
osteoblasts,
2.  To characterize the purified bone proteins with regard to
chemical composition, molecular weight, and (to some degree)
primary structure,
3.  To raise monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies against the bone
proteins, for use in biosynthetic and immunolocalization
experiments,
4.  To study the biosynthesis of the bone proteins.  Studies will be
designed to demonstrate their synthesis by osteoblast-like or
osteoblast-enriched cell cultures,
5.  To determine if their biosynthesis is regulated at the
transcriptional level by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and to delineate
the nature of the regulation,
6.  To determine the tissue and cellular localization of the bone
proteins by immunolocalization experiments and the time of
appearance in a developmental sense, and
7.  To investigate possible biologic activities of purified proteins,
including effects on cell attachment and spreading, on
hydroxyapatite nucleation and growth and on differentiation of
mesenchymal cells.

These experiments will bring about further understanding of the
fundamental biochemical mechanisms involved in bone formation.
This information would be useful in understanding the basic causes
of certain genetic and systemic diseases that affect bone.  They
may lead to diagnostic tests to evaluate the severity and
treatment of the diseases.  And this research will contribute to
the understanding of the vitamin regulation of calcium and
phosphate.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 3159266
- **Project number:** 1R01AR039273-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR HOUSTON
- **SAM.gov UEI:** ZUFBNVZ587D4
- **Principal Investigator:** WILLIAM T BUTLER
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 1987
- **Award amount:** $143,329
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 1987-06-01 → 1990-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/3159266

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 3159266, BONE PROTEINS--CHEMISTRY/SYNTHESIS/TISSUE LOCALIZATION (1R01AR039273-01). Retrieved via MORVS 2026-10-24 from https://api.morvs.ai/grant/nih/3159266. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*