Beneficial Effects of a Flavonoid Fraction of Herba Epimedii on Bone Metabolism in Ovariectomized Rats

Women have a lower incidence of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) than men at a similar age but the reverse is the case after menopause, indicating a possible protective effect of estrogen on cardiometabolic function. Although various hormonal therapies have been formulated to combat the CVD risks in postmenopausal state, the beneficial effects have not been consistent. Obesity with insulin resistance (IR) is closely linked to CVD risks while ovariectomized rodents have been shown to mimic a state of obesity and IR. We therefore hypothesized that low-dose spironolactone would ameliorate obesity and IR in estrogen-deprived rats by replenishing estrogen and suppressing elevated glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3). Ten-week-old female Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups: sham-operated (SHM), spironolactone (SPL; 0.25 mg/kg), and ovariectomized (OVX) rats treated with or without spironolactone daily for 8 weeks. Results showed that estrogen deprivation through ovariectomy caused increased body mass gain and visceral adiposity that are accompanied by increased HOMA-IR, HOMA-β, 1-hour postload glucose, glucose intolerance, platelet/lymphocyte ratio, plasma insulin, atherogenic dyslipidemia, uric acid, GSK-3, corticosterone, and aldosterone and depressed 17β-estradiol. However, treatment of OVX rats with spironolactone ameliorated all these effects. Taken together, the results demonstrate that treatment with low-dose spironolactone improves obesity and IR, which appears to involve replenishment of estrogen and suppression of GSK-3 along with circulating mineralocorticoid and glucocorticoid. The findings imply a positive cardiometabolic effect of low-dose spironolactone usage in estrogen-deprived conditions.

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The Antiosteoporotic Activity of Central-Icaritin (CIT) on Bone Metabolism of Ovariectomized Rats

Molecules ◽

10.3390/molecules191118690 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 19 (11) ◽

pp. 18690-18704 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Jun Jiang ◽

Jie Li ◽

Xiaobin Jia

Keyword(s):

Bone Metabolism ◽

Ovariectomized Rats

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Sirt1/Foxo Axis Plays a Crucial Role in the Mechanisms of Therapeutic Effects of Erzhi Pill in Ovariectomized Rats

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2018/9210490 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2018 ◽

pp. 1-12 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Wenna Liang ◽

Xihai Li ◽

Guanhui Li ◽

Liu Hu ◽

Shanshan Ding ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Bone Metabolism ◽

Crucial Role ◽

Molecular Mechanisms ◽

Bone Biomechanics ◽

Ovariectomized Rats ◽

Therapeutic Effects ◽

Bone Morphology ◽

Mineral Density ◽

Metabolism Disorder ◽

Successful Establishment

Background. Erzhi pill (EZP), a traditional Chinese herbal formula, has been widely used to treat postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMOP) in China. However, its molecular mechanisms remain unclear. The aim of the present study is to investigate the antiosteoporotic effect of EZP on an ovariectomized rat model of PMOP. We performed the biomarkers of bone metabolism disorder, bone morphology, bone mineral density (BMD), and bone biomechanics to confirm the successful establishment of the PMOP model. We then investigated the expression of biomarkers related to the Sirt1/Foxo axis. We also examined microRNA-132 (miR-132), a regulator in the Sirtuin1 (Sirt1) expression. The bone metabolism disorder, bone morphology, BMD, and bone biomechanics in ovariectomized rats were improved by EZP administration. The antiosteoporotic effect of EZP was confirmed. We also found that the expressions of Sirt1, Runx2, Foxo1, and Foxo3a were downregulated in ovariectomized rats, while being then upregulated by EZP administration. And the expression of PPAR-γ and miR-132 was upregulated in ovariectomized rats and then downregulated by EZP administration. These results provided evidence that Sirt1/Foxo axis related mechanism may play a crucial role in the therapeutic effects of EZP, indicating that Sirt1/Foxo axis can be considered as a potential therapeutic target for PMOP in the future.

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Effect of anthocyanin-rich bilberry extract on bone metabolism in ovariectomized rats

Biomedical Reports ◽

10.3892/br.2017.1029 ◽

2017 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Saki Shimizu ◽

Hiroshi Matsushita ◽

Yuko Morii ◽

Yuriko Ohyama ◽

Noriko Morita ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Bone Metabolism ◽

Ovariectomized Rats ◽

Bilberry Extract

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Zhuang-Gu-Fang Treats Osteoporosis in Ovariectomized Rats by Increasing the Osteogenesis-Related Factors Leptin, Ghrelin, and PYY

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2020/8164064 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2020 ◽

pp. 1-9

Author(s):

Yuanjin Chen ◽

Rui Bai ◽

Wenhui Chen ◽

Shuanglei Li ◽

Yunxia Jiang

Keyword(s):

Bone Metabolism ◽

Therapeutic Effect ◽

Wistar Rats ◽

Dose Group ◽

Bone Structure ◽

Ovariectomized Rats ◽

Type I ◽

Mineral Density ◽

Related Factors ◽

Expression Levels

Zhuang-Gu-Fang is a Chinese medicinal compound mixture, which is mainly composed of traditional remedies like the Epimedium Herb, Astragalus, and Eucommia among many others. The study is aimed at investigating the therapeutic effect of Zhuang-Gu-Fang in ovariectomized rats. Fifty six-month-old Wistar rats were randomly selected and divided into 5 groups (n = 10), namely, model group, positive group, low-dose Chinese medicine group, medium-dose group, and high-dose group. Another 10 sham operation Wistar rats were taken as a negative control group. After 3 months of intervention, the bone mineral density (BMD), procollagen type I N-peptide (PINP), beta C-terminal cross-linked telopeptides of type I collagen carboxyl-terminal peptide (β-CTX), Leptin, Ghrelin, and Peptide YY (PYY) of each group were measured. Besides, the ultrastructure of bone structure and osteoblasts was also observed by transmission electron microscopy. Western blot method was used to detect the expression levels of Leptin and Ghrelin in bone tissue, and RT-PCR detected the mRNA expression levels of Leptin and Ghrelin. BMD test indicated that Zhuang-Gu-Fang could effectively prevent the loss of tibia bone in ovariectomized rats. Histomorphology analysis showed that Zhuang-Gu-Fang could preserve trabecular bone structure integrity and improve osteoblast ultrastructure. Notably, the study found out that Zhuang-Gu-Fang worked through balancing the bone metabolism via increasing bone formation/resorption ratio. Additionally, Zhuang-Gu-Fang highlighted the recovery effects in multiple levels of osteogenesis- and osteanagenesis-related factors Leptin, Ghrelin, and PYY. Conclusively, the study proved the therapeutic potential of the Zhuang-Gu-Fang for postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMOP) and further revealed that its therapeutic effect was related to the balance of bone metabolism and the recovery effects of bone-related factors Leptin, Ghrelin, and PYY.

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