Osteocytes have a stellate shape, and in humans they are approximately 9 micrometers long in the short axis by 20 micrometers long in the long axis. The cell body varies in size from 5-20micrometers in diameter and contain 40-60 cell processes per cell, with a cell to cell distance between 20-30 micrometers. A mature osteocyte contains a single nucleus that is located toward the vascular side and has one or two nucleoli and a membrane. The cell also exhibits a reduced size endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus and mitochondria, and cell processes that radiate towards the mineralizing matrix.[5] Osteocytes form an extensive connecting syncitial network via small cytoplasmic/dendritic processes in canaliculi.
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