Protective effects of berberine on senile osteoporosis in mice

Effects and mechanisms of berberine-loaded tetrahedral framework nucleic acids on osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is a disease that plagues the world, the complications of which, spinal fractures and hip fractures, seriously endanger the health of the elderly. At present, the main treatment for osteoporosis is anti-osteoporosis drugs, some of which, however, have poor efficacy and side effects. Thus, the development of new drugs for the treatment of osteoporosis is of clinical significance. Berberine (BBR) has a good therapeutic effect on osteoporosis, but its poor solubility and instability limit its effect. Tetrahedral framework nucleic acids (tFNAs) are a novel nano-drug delivery tool, and their good cell entry ability and stability make them an excellent carrier. Therefore, a new nanocomplex T-BBR was synthesized by carrying BBR with tFNAs. Compared with BBR, T-BBR showed better osteogenic and anti-osteoporosis abilities in both in vivo and in vitro experiments, the mechanism of which was realized through the Wnt signaling pathway.

Berberine ameliorates nonalcoholic fatty liver disease-induced bone loss by inhibiting ferroptosis

BACKGROUND

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) may contribute to osteoporosis. Berberine is a traditional Chinese medicine and was recently shown to be beneficial in NAFLD. However, little is known about its impact on bone loss induced by NAFLD.

AIM

We aimed to explore the role of berberine in bone loss and determine its underlying mechanisms in NAFLD.

METHODS

C57BL/6 mice were fed a high-fat high-fructose high-glucose diet (HFFGD) for 16 weeks to establish a NAFLD mouse model. The mice were administered berberine (300 mg/kg/d) by gavage, and fatty liver levels and bone loss indicators were tested.

RESULTS

Berberine significantly improved HFFGD-induced weight gain, hepatic lipid accumulation and increases in serum liver enzymes, thereby alleviating NAFLD. Berberine increased trabecular number (Tb. N), trabecular thickness (Tb. Th), bone volume to tissue volume ratio (BV/TV), and decreased trabecular separation (Tb. Sp) and restored bone loss in NAFLD. Mechanistically, berberine significantly inhibited ferroptosis and 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE), prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2), and transferrin (TF) levels and increased ferritin heavy chain (FTH) levels in the femurs of HFFGD-fed mice. Moreover, berberine also activated the solute carrier family 7 member 11 (SLC7A11)/glutathione (GSH)/glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) signaling pathway.

CONCLUSION

Berberine significantly ameliorates bone loss induced by NAFLD by activating the SLC7A11/GSH/GPX4 signaling pathway and inhibiting ferroptosis. Therefore, berberine may serve as a therapeutic agent for NAFLD-induced bone loss.

Protective Effects of Phellodendron Species on Bone Health: A Novel Perspective on Their Potentials in Treating Osteoporosis and Osteoarthritis

Phellodendron (PN) species, traditionally used in Chinese medicine for centuries, hold promise as a potential treatment for osteoporosis (OP) and osteoarthritis (OA) due to their bioactive compounds. The bioactive compounds, including berberine and palmatine, exhibit anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and bone-protective properties, contributing to their potential therapeutic benefits in promoting bone health and preventing bone loss. However, challenges such as the need for standardized preparation and dosing, limited clinical studies, and potential interactions with other medications hinder their clinical use. Nonetheless, the rich history of PN species in Chinese medicine provides a promising foundation for future investigation into their potential as alternative treatments for OP and OA. Further research is needed to fully understand the underlying mechanisms of action and explore the clinical implications of PN for bone health.

Pharmacokinetics, Tissue Distribution and Excretion of Demethyleneberberine, a Metabolite of Berberine, in Rats and Mice

Demethyleneberberine is an active component extracted from the Chinese herbal drug Cortex Phellodendri. It is also a metabolite of berberine in animals and humans. However, the pharmacokinetics, tissue distribution and excretion of demethyleneberberine have not been reported. The present study aimed to investigate the pharmacokinetic parameters of demethyleneberberine by applying high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). After intragastric administration of demethyleneberberine in rats and mice, the pharmacokinetics, tissue distribution and excretion of demethyleneberberine were comparatively studied for the first time. The plasma concentration of demethyleneberberine reached its peak within 5 min after intragastric administration in both rats and mice. Furthermore, its bioavailability was comparable, ranging from 4.47% to 5.94%, higher than that of berberine. The total excretion of demethyleneberberine in the urine, feces and bile was 7.28~9.77%. These findings provide valuable insights into the pharmacological and clinical research on demethyleneberberine.

Berberine-Encapsulated Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)-Hydroxyapatite (PLGA/HA) Microspheres Synergistically Promote Bone Regeneration with DOPA-IGF-1 via the IGF-1R/PI3K/AKT/mTOR Pathway

Polymer microspheres have recently shown outstanding potential for bone tissue engineering due to their large specific surface area, good porosity, injectable property, good biocompatibility, and biodegradability. Their good load-release function and surface modifiability make them useful as a carrier of drugs or growth factors for the repair of bone defects in irregularly injured or complex microenvironments, such as skull defects. In this study, berberine (BBR)-encapsulated poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA)/hydroxyapatite (HA) microspheres were fabricated using electrified liquid jets and a phase-separation technique, followed by modification with the 3,4-hydroxyphenalyalanine-containing recombinant insulin-like growth-factor-1 (DOPA-IGF-1). Both the BBR and the IGF-1 exhibited sustained release from the IGF-1@PLGA/HA-BBR microspheres, and the composite microspheres exhibited good biocompatibility. The results of the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity assays showed that the BBR and IGF-1 in the composite microspheres synergistically promoted the osteogenic differentiation of MC3T3-E1 cells. Furthermore, it was confirmed that immobilized IGF-1 enhances the mRNA expression of an osteogenic-related extracellular matrix and that BBR accelerates the mRNA expression of IGF-1-mediated osteogenic differentiation and cell mineralization. Further cellular studies demonstrate that IGF-1 could further synergistically activate the IGF-1R/PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway using BBR, thereby enhancing IGF-1-mediated osteogenesis. Rat calvarial defect repair experiments show that IGF-1@PLGA/HA-BBR microspheres can effectively promote the complete bony connection required to cover the defect site and enhance bone defect repair. These findings suggest that IGF-1@PLGA/HA-BBR composite microspheres show a great potential for bone regeneration.

Transcriptomic and Proteomic Analyses Reveal New Insights into Regulatory Mechanisms of Strontium in Bovine Chondrocytes

Strontium (Sr) is a trace element found mainly in bone, and it performs a dual action by promoting bone formation and inhibiting bone resorption. Sr has been used to evaluate the gastrointestinal calcium (Ca) absorption capacity of dairy cows due to the similar physicochemical properties of the two elements. However, the possible effects of Sr on dairy cows remain unclear. This study aimed to explore the potential regulatory mechanism of Sr in bovine chondrocytes by performing transcriptomic and proteomic analyses. A total of 111 genes (52 up-regulated and 59 down-regulated) were identified as significantly altered (1.2-fold change and p < 0.05) between control and Sr-treated groups. Moreover, LC-MS-based proteomic analysis detected 286 changed proteins (159 up-regulated and 127 down-regulated) between the control and Sr-treated groups (1.2-fold change and p < 0.05). Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) annotations of a combination analysis of the transcriptomic and proteomic data revealed that the genes were predominantly involved in chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation, fat metabolism, the inflammation process, and immune responses. Overall, our data reveal a potential regulatory mechanism of strontium in bovine chondrocytes, thus providing further insights into the functions and application of Sr in ruminants.

Untargeted metabolomics reveals the effect of rearing systems on bone quality parameters in chickens

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of rearing systems on the bone quality parameters in chickens using a metabolomics strategy. A total of 419 male one-day-old chicks were randomly allocated to two groups, a floor rearing group (FRG, n = 173) and a cage rearing group (CRG, n = 246). At 6, 8, 10, and 12 weeks of age, all chickens were radiographed by a digital X-ray machine, and body weight was recorded. At 12 weeks of age, 12 birds were selected from each group to obtain tibia and femur, and bone quality parameters of bone mineral density (BMD), mineral content (BMC), breaking strength (BBS), stiffness, Young's modulus (YM), ash content, calcium content, and phosphorus content were determined. An untargeted metabolomics assay was performed to identify changes in the serum metabolic profile (n = 8 birds/group). The results showed that cage-reared chickens had wider tibiae and greater body weight compared with floor-reared chickens. There were no significant differences in BMC or BBS between the two groups (p > 0.05), but BMD, ash content, calcium content, and phosphorus content of the tibia and femur of FRG were significantly higher than those of CRG (p < 0.05). Greater stiffness and YM of the femur were also observed in birds raised in the FRG compared with those raised in the CRG (p < 0.05). Taken together, the results suggest that rearing systems affected bone quality parameters. Furthermore, 148 and 149 differential metabolites were identified in positive and negative ion modes by LC-MS/MS analysis, among which 257 metabolites were significantly correlated with 16 bone quality parameters, including leucine, myristoleic acid, glycocholic acid, and N-phenylacetamide. KEGG analysis indicated that 15 metabolic pathways, including six pathways of amino acid metabolism, two pathways of lipid metabolism, and two pathways of carbohydrate metabolism, were responsible for bone quality. Overall, the present study demonstrated the effect of rearing systems on bone quality parameters, and identified several metabolites and metabolic pathways associated with bone quality parameters.

New opportunities and challenges of natural products research: When target identification meets single-cell multiomics

Natural products, and especially the active ingredients found in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), have a thousand-year-long history of clinical use and a strong theoretical basis in TCM. As such, traditional remedies provide shortcuts for the development of original new drugs in China, and increasing numbers of natural products are showing great therapeutic potential in various diseases. This paper reviews the molecular mechanisms of action of natural products from different sources used in the treatment of inflammatory diseases and cancer, introduces the methods and newly emerging technologies used to identify and validate the targets of natural active ingredients, enumerates the expansive list of TCM used to treat inflammatory diseases and cancer, and summarizes the patterns of action of emerging technologies such as single-cell multiomics, network pharmacology, and artificial intelligence in the pharmacological studies of natural products to provide insights for the development of innovative natural product-based drugs. Our hope is that we can make use of advances in target identification and single-cell multiomics to obtain a deeper understanding of actions of mechanisms of natural products that will allow innovation and revitalization of TCM and its swift industrialization and internationalization.

Effects and mechanisms of natural alkaloids for prevention and treatment of osteoporosis

Natural alkaloids are polycyclic, nitrogen-containing, and basic compounds obtained from plants. In this review, the advances in bioactive alkaloids with respect to their chemical structures, herbal sources, and effects for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis are discussed. Anti-osteoporosis alkaloids are classified into six categories based on the chemical structure, namely, isoquinoline alkaloids, quinolizidine alkaloids, piperidine alkaloids, indole alkaloids, pyrrolizidine alkaloids and steroidal alkaloids. They promote mesenchymal stem cells differentiation, improve osteoblast proliferation, stimulate osteoblast autophagy and suppress osteoclast formation. These natural alkaloids can regulate multiple signaling pathways, including interrupting the tumor necrosis factor receptor associated factor 6- receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa B interaction, inhibiting the nuclear factor kappa B pathway in osteoclasts, activating the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases pathway in osteoblasts, and triggering the wingless and int-1 pathway in mesenchymal stem cells. This review provides evidence and support for novel drug and clinical treatment of osteoporosis using natural alkaloids.

Antiosteoporosis and bone protective effect of nimbolide in steroid-induced osteoporosis rats

BACKGROUND

Osteoporosis is a metabolic, hereditary, progressive disease characterized by unusual bone production across the skeleton and a loss the bone tissue microstructure and mass. In this experimental study, we scrutinized the antiosteoporosis effect of nimbolide against glucocorticoid (GCs) induced osteoporosis in rats.

METHODS

Swiss albino female rats were employed for the current experiment study and the rats were divided into different groups. Dexamethasone (0.1 mg/kg/day) was used for induction the osteoporosis and the rats were received the different doses of nimbolide (2.5, 5, and 7.5 mg/kg) for the estimation of bone protective effects. The body weight was estimated (initially and finally). Hormones, bone metabolic markers, bone turnover markers, bone structure, biomechanical, histomorphometric dynamic, biochemical markers, and histomorphometric static parameters were analyzed.

RESULTS

The body weight of GCs group rats considerably suppressed and nimbolide treatment remarkably improved the body weight. Nimbolide treated group exhibited the enhancement of bone metabolic, bone structure markers, and histomophometric dynamic markers, which was suppressed during the GCs-induced osteoporosis. GCs-induced osteoporosis rats exhibited the enhancement of procollagen type 1 C-terminal propeptide (P1CP), carboxy-terminal crosslinked telopeptide of type 1 collagen (CTX-1), Dickkopf-1 (DKK1), tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRACP 5b), and suppressed the level of bone alkaline phosphatase (BAP), which was reversed by the nimbolide treatment. Nimbolide treatment remarkably improved the level of estradiol and suppressed the level of parathyroid hormone (PTH), which was altered during the osteoporosis. Nimbolide treatment significantly (p < 0.001) improved the level of calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus in the serum and bone tissue. Nimbolide treatment also altered the level of bone metabolic markers and suppressed the level of inflammatory cytokines.

CONCLUSION

Based on the findings, we may conclude that nimbolide has antiosteoporosis properties via balancing the bone mass and improving vitamin and hormone levels.

Therapeutic Potential of Berberine for Osteoporosis and its Underlying Mechanisms: A Bioinformatics, Network Pharmacology, Molecular Dynamics Simulation Study

Osteoporosis is a systemic skeletal disease that can easily lead to bone fractures. Berberine has been shown to be effective in treating osteoporosis. This study was conducted to identify the potential mechanism of berberine in treating this complaint. We screened potential targets of berberine and identified the osteoporosis-related differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the microarray dataset GSE56815. Protein–protein interaction (PPI) network construction, hub targets identification, and pathway enrichment were carried out to find the potential targets. Molecular docking and molecular dynamics studies were performed to verify the combination of berberine with its treatment-related central targets. In addition, SwissADME preliminarily evaluated the physicochemical properties of berberine. Through data mining, 23 osteoporosis-related targets of berberine were selected. PPI and module analyses suggested that AKT1, MAPK1, ESR1, AR, TP53, and PTGS2 are the core targets of berberine. Docking and molecular dynamics studies showed that berberine could stably bind to core proteins to form a protein–ligand complex. The enrichment analysis showed that the estrogen signaling pathway and thyroid hormone signaling pathway play important roles in curing osteoporosis. To sum up, berberine primarily acts on AKT1, MAPK1, ESR1, AR, TP53, and PTGS2, mainly regulating the estrogen and thyroid hormone signaling pathways to treat osteoporosis in a multi-target, multi-pathway, and multi-system manner.

The Effect of Bone Morphogenetic Protein 2 (BMP-2)/Estrogen Composite Nanoparticles on the Differentiation Function of Osteoporotic Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells (BMSCs)

The menopausal hormone abnormal changes such as estrogen deficiency and increased FSH secretion in female patients in old age may cause osteoporosis which is plagued by patients. The pathogenesis of osteoporosis is not yet fully understood. BMP in the transforming growth factor-β superfamily is a key member in the process of bone growth and development, among which BMP-2 exerts critical roles. Impaired osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSC) contributes to the progress of osteoporosis. BMSC plays an indispensable role in treating osteoporosis and can develop into different directions through induction. As the regenerative medicine nanotechnology has become a new medical method, it is believed that BMSC can be used to treat osteoporosis and other related diseases. Our study analyzed the effects of BMP-2/estrogen composite nanoparticles on the proliferation and differentiation of osteoporotic BMSC cells to provide a reliable reference for the future treatment. Our results showed that BMP-2/estrogen composite nanoparticles promoted BMSC cell proliferation, increased ALP activity, decreased apoptosis rate, increased the expression of Col-1, Runx2 and Osterix, upregulated the osteogenic marker BMP-2. As confirmed by Alizarin Red staining, it could differentiate into osteoblasts and the content of Trap was decreased. In conclusion, our study confirms that BMP-2/estrogen composite nanoparticles can promote BMSC cell proliferation, osteogenic differentiation, and inhibit osteoclast differentiation, thereby providing new treatments and theoretical reference basis for treating osteoporosis.

Targeting Sirt1, AMPK, Nrf2, CK2, and Soluble Guanylate Cyclase with Nutraceuticals: A Practical Strategy for Preserving Bone Mass

There is a vast pre-clinical literature suggesting that certain nutraceuticals have the potential to aid the preservation of bone mass in the context of estrogen withdrawal, glucocorticoid treatment, chronic inflammation, or aging. In an effort to bring some logical clarity to these findings, the signaling pathways regulating osteoblast, osteocyte, and osteoclast induction, activity, and survival are briefly reviewed in the present study. The focus is placed on the following factors: the mechanisms that induce and activate the RUNX2 transcription factor, a key driver of osteoblast differentiation and function; the promotion of autophagy and prevention of apoptosis in osteoblasts/osteoclasts; and the induction and activation of NFATc1, which promotes the expression of many proteins required for osteoclast-mediated osteolysis. This analysis suggests that the activation of sirtuin 1 (Sirt1), AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), the Nrf2 transcription factor, and soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) can be expected to aid the maintenance of bone mass, whereas the inhibition of the serine kinase CK2 should also be protective in this regard. Fortuitously, nutraceuticals are available to address each of these targets. Sirt1 activation can be promoted with ferulic acid, N1-methylnicotinamide, melatonin, nicotinamide riboside, glucosamine, and thymoquinone. Berberine, such as the drug metformin, is a clinically useful activator of AMPK. Many agents, including lipoic acid, melatonin, thymoquinone, astaxanthin, and crucifera-derived sulforaphane, can promote Nrf2 activity. Pharmacological doses of biotin can directly stimulate sGC. Additionally, certain flavonols, notably quercetin, can inhibit CK2 in high nanomolar concentrations that may be clinically relevant. Many, though not all, of these agents have shown favorable effects on bone density and structure in rodent models of bone loss. Complex nutraceutical regimens providing a selection of these nutraceuticals in clinically meaningful doses may have an important potential for preserving bone health. Concurrent supplementation with taurine, N-acetylcysteine, vitamins D and K2, and minerals, including magnesium, zinc, and manganese, plus a diet naturally high in potassium, may also be helpful in this regard.