Dermal bone develops differently from the other bone tissues in the body, by intramembranous ossification . In this process, the bone is not preformed in cartilage (as it is in endochondral ossification); rather, the bones arise directly from the mesenchyme over the brain, induced by the developing brain. [A] They form in close association with the dermis of the skin [D]
The process of intramembranous ossification begins when the mesenchyme cells in a connective tissue transform into osteoblasts, which secrete a fibrous matrix called the osteoid. As the osteoid becomes calcified, it forms a network of bony rods. New bone is laid down in a similar fashion around the periphery of this network, [D]. Dermal bone is capable of remodeling.
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