Effect of strontium salt on bone turnover and bone microarchitecture in OVX - induced osteoporotic rats

Objective To investigate the effect of strontium salt on bone microstructure in ovariectomy(OVX)- induced osteoporosis rats and the possible mechanism.Methods Totally 27 11-month-old female Wistar rats were randomly divided into Sham group(n = 9),OVX group(n = 9),and Sr group(n = 9).One week after OVX,daily oral administration of SrCL_2[250mg/(kg·day)]or vehicle started in the Sr group and Sham/OVX group and lasted for 12 weeks.At sacrifice,the right proximal tibiae were removed,subjected to micro CT for determination of trabecular bone structure and then processing for bone histomorphometry to assess bone remodeling.Results Micro CT data revealed that Sr treatment ameliorated the deterioration of the microarchitecture of proximal tibiae induced by OVX,as evidenced by greater bone volume,great trabecular thickness,and less trabecular separation than OVX group.The static and dynamic parameters of bone histomorphometry indicated that bone formation variables significantly increased and bone resorption variables significontly decreased between Sr and OVX groups.Conclusions Sr has a beneficial effect on trabecular bone in OVX rat model and this effect is possibly associated with stimulation of bone formation as well as inhibition of bone resorption, which may provide one mechanism for the anti-fracture effect of strontium salt in postmenopausal women.