{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.020429362880886426, 'fraction_numerical': 0.0006925207756232687, 'mean_word_length': 5.321663019693654, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 0, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 0, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Cell biochemistry and function and the integration of biomedical research (location, location, location)

Figure 1. A high resolution micrograph (courtesy: Tim Arnett, University College, London) of cortical bone showing the location of osteocytes within the bone matrix and the syncitium of cannaliculii that allow communication both between osteocytes and between osteocytes and the cells on the bone surfaces For the most part, biomedical research is funded with the ultimate primary aim of preventing, treating or alleviating the effects of disease. Secondary aims include increasing our basic understanding of cellular processes, development of new technologies and increasing economic potential. In multi-cellular organisms, apart from co-ordinating their own activities, cells which constitute a tissue must act in concert and in turn those tissues must function as integral parts of an organ or the whole organism. Thus dysfunction within a single cell type can lead to failures in whole organs and organisms. In the last couple of decades, however, the tendency has been to move away from a holistic approach to understanding cell biochemistry and tissue function, towards a more fragmented approach based on individual disciplines such as molecular and cellular biology. This emphasis may be at the expense of an understanding of basic biochemistry (e.g. intermediary metabolism) and anatomy in the current generation of research students. Whilst this discipline-driven approach has led to profound advances in our basic understanding of cellular mechanisms there is now, more than ever, a need for this knowledge to be integrated into in vivo scenarios. This is the niche that Cell Biochemistry and Function (CBF) was historically intended to fill. The initial idea for CBF came from Dr Joe Chayen who, throughout his scientific career, was interested in how cells functioned in situ, with particular reference to biochemistry and anatomical context (i.e. histology). The importance of the location of particular cells and the role of the extracellular matrix in which they reside, has been consistently championed by a few enlightened scientists. The development of tools such as immunohistochemistry, in situ hybridisation, confocal microscopy, laser capture microdissection, along with the quantitative in situ biochemical techniques pioneered by Chayen and colleagues has provided us with an array of approaches that can be applied to the study of cells in their native environments. The osteocyte (Figure 1) is a classic example of a cell that resides deep within a tissue (bone). Osteocytes are now considered likely the sensor of biomechanical strain, initiating the formation of new bone and the removal of damaged bone and thus exert primary controlling influence on skeletal function. Although in vitro studies have been useful in determining the possible pathways by