The aims of this study were to evaluate the osteoprotective effect of aqueous extract fromRhizoma Dioscoreae(RDE) on rats with ovariectomy- (OVX-) induced osteopenia. Our results show that RDE could inhibit bone loss of OVX rats after a 12-week treatment. The microarray analysis showed that 68 genes were upregulated and that 100 genes were downregulated in femurs of the RDE group rats compared to those in the OVX group. The Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) showed that several downregulated genes had the potential to code for proteins that were involved in the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway (Sost, Lrp6, Tcf7l2, and Alpl) and the RANKL/RANK signaling pathway (Map2k6 and Nfatc4). These results revealed that the mechanism for an antiosteopenic effect of RDE might lie in the synchronous inhibitory effects on both the bone formation and the bone resorption, which is associated with modulating the Wnt/β-catenin signaling and the RANKL/RANK signaling.
The Protective Effect of Rhizoma Dioscoreae Extract against Alveolar Bone Loss in Ovariectomized Rats via Regulating Wnt and p38 MAPK Signaling