Heterotopic ossification (HO) manifests as bone development in the skeletal muscles and surrounding soft tissues. It can be caused by injury, surgery, or may have a genetic background. In each case, its development might differ, and depending on the age, sex, and patient’s conditions, it could lead to a more or a less severe outcome. In the case of the injury or surgery provoked ossification development, it could be, to some extent, prevented by treatments. As far as genetic disorders are concerned, such prevention approaches are highly limited. Many lines of evidence point to the inflammatory process and abnormalities in the bone morphogenetic factor signaling pathway as the molecular and cellular backgrounds for HO development. However, the clear targets allowing the design of treatments preventing or lowering HO have not been identified yet. In this review, we summarize current knowledge on HO types, its symptoms, and possible ways of prevention and treatment. We also describe the molecules and cells in which abnormal function could lead to HO development. We emphasize the studies involving animal models of HO as being of great importance for understanding and future designing of the tools to counteract this pathology.

中文翻译：

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骨骼肌-人和小鼠模型中负责异位骨化发展的细胞调查。

异位骨化（HO）表现为骨骼肌和周围软组织中的骨骼发育。它可能是由伤害，手术引起的，或者可能具有遗传背景。在每种情况下，其发展都可能不同，并且取决于年龄，性别和患者的状况，它可能导致或多或少的严重后果。在受伤或手术引起的骨化发展的情况下，可以在某种程度上通过治疗防止骨化。就遗传疾病而言，这种预防方法受到极大限制。许多证据表明，炎症形成过程和骨形态发生因子信号通路中的异常是HO发育的分子和细胞背景。然而，尚未确定允许设计预防或降低HO的治疗方法的明确目标。在这篇综述中，我们总结了关于HO类型，其症状以及可能的预防和治疗方法的当前知识。我们还描述了异常功能可能导致HO发育的分子和细胞。我们强调涉及HO的动物模型的研究对于理解和应对这种病理的工具的未来设计非常重要。