Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Osteogenesis Imperfecta, Dustin Kim

Campus Research Day

Osteogenesis Imperfecta is an inherited disease that has varying stages of severity. The effects of this disease results in a person's bones becoming brittle and weak to where it can easily fracture or completely break. Though this disease is similar to other bone-deteriorating diseases, like osteoporosis, osteogenesis imperfecta begins with a person having abnormalities in the genes that produce collagen in bones. Collagen is an important component of bone, keeping it strong and resilient against injuries. Yet, those genes end up shutting off, and the victim begins to lack collagen in their bones, making their bones susceptible to breaking.