Osteocyte viability may play a significant role in the maintenance and integrity of bone. Bone loss due to osteoporosis may be due in part to osteocyte cell death. We have identified a factor that will protect both osteoblasts and osteocytes from cell death due to agents known to be responsible for various forms of osteoporosis. Not only does estrogen preserve osteoblast and osteocyte viability...

Osteoporosis is a medical condition which affects millions of men and women. People with osteoporosis have low bone mass that places them at increased risk of bone fracture. A promising approach is developed as alternative (non pharmaceutical) strategies for bone maintenance, as well as for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. Certain plants from the different families have shown the g...

OBJECTIVES Osteoporosis is a disease of bones that is thought to result from an imbalance between bone resorption and bone formation. Although osteoporosis itself has no symptoms, osteoporosis caused by osteoclasts leads to an increased risk of fracture. Here we examined the effects of cornus officinalis on receptor activator of nuclear factor-kappaB ligand (RANKL)-mediated osteoclast different...

Bone homeostasis is maintained by a balance between bone formation by osteoblasts and bone resorption by osteoclasts. Osteoporosis occurs when osteoclast activity surpasses osteoblast activity. Our previous studies showed the plant-derived natural polysaccharide (Polygonatum sibiricum polysaccharide or PSP) had significant anti-ovariectomy (OVX)-induced osteoporosis effects in vivo, but the mec...

Osteoporosis is a well known consequence of glucocorti-coid treatment that can result in significant morbidity and mortality. Glucocorticoid-induced bone loss occurs early, usually within 6–12 months of starting therapy. During this time the rate of bone loss is rapid before decreasing or reaching a plateau. 1 2 4 Clinically this decrease in bone mineral density puts patients at an increased ri...

Osteoporosis is a systemic skeletal disease and there is a close relationship between the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and bone metabolism. Leptin has been shown to regulate bone formation and bone resorption via the SNS. However, the effect of SNS on leptin signaling has not been clearly understood. In the present study, we studied the effect of propranolol on ovariectomy-induced osteoporo...

Post-menopausal osteoporosis is a serious age-related disease. After the menopause, estrogen deficiency is common, and excessive osteoclast activity causes osteoporosis. Osteoclasts are multinucleated cells generated from the differentiation of monocyte/macrophage precursor cells such as RAW 264.7 cells. The water extract of Lycii Radicis Cortex (LRC) is made from the dried root bark of Lycium ...

Osteoporosis is a chronic systemic disease characterised by bone loss and microarchitectural deterioration. Since the underlying regulatory mechanisms are still not fully understood and treatment options are not satisfactorily resolved, massive efforts are underway to further investigate this critical illness. Large animal models are stipulated, e.g. by the Food and Drug Administration, for pre...

Apoptosis prevents osteoporosis G randmothers everywhere know well that estrogen defi cits lead to osteoporosis. Now, the molecular basis for this debilitating bone loss is fi nally identifi ed. Estrogen is needed to kill off bone-destroying osteoclasts, show Takashi Nakamura, Shigeaki Kato (University of Tokyo, Japan), and colleagues. The root cause of osteoporosis has been diffi cult to pin d...

Osteoporosis is an age-related disease that affects millions of people. Growth differentiation factor 11 (GDF11) is a secreted member of the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) superfamily. Deletion of Gdf11 has been shown to result in a skeletal anterior-posterior patterning disorder. Here we show a role for GDF11 in bone remodelling. GDF11 treatment leads to bone loss in both young and ag...