On Feb. 25, 2021, scientists at the Childrenﾒs Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern announced they had identified the specialized environment, known as a niche, in the bone marrow where new bone and immune cells are produced.

The study, published in Nature, also showed that movement-induced stimulation was required for the maintenance of this niche, as well as the bone and immune-forming cells that it contains. Together, these findings identified a new way that exercise strengthens bones and immune function.