As the balance in bone remodeling is disturbed, increased bone resorption alone, or in combination with decreased bone formation, leads to net loss of bone. Treatment or prevention of bone loss involves overall reduction of bone resorption and/or enhanced bone formation.

A study was conducted to assess the effects of Cissus quadrangularis on postmenopausal bone loss in the long bones of female experimental models. Two-month old models were either sham operated or ovariectomized and fed C. quadrangularis diet. The long bones were scanned using peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) and microcomputed tomography (μCT) 11 weeks later.

In the distal femoral metaphysis, femoral diaphysis, and proximal tibia, control mice exhibited diminished cancellous and cortical bone. C. quadrangularis-fed mice had no significant differences in trabecular number, thickness, and connectivity density, between the sham and ovariectomized groups, except for cortical bone mineral content in the proximal tibia. TNF-α (48%), IL-1β (84%) and IL-6 (53%) levels decreased in the C. quadrangularis sham models when compared to lab chow sham models. In the proximal tibial metaphysis, C. quadrangularis ovariectomized models had significantly higher cortical bone mineral content (BMC) (48%), cortical bone mineral density (BMD) (2%), and cortical thickness (42%) when compared to lab chow ovariectomized models (Figure 1). In distal femoral metaphysis, C. quadrangularis ovariectomized models showed significantly higher cancellous BMC (8%), cancellous BMD (34%), cortical BMC (32%), cortical BMD (8%), and cortical thickness (30%) when compared to lab chow ovariectomized models (Figure 2).      

C. quadrangularis was thus found to effectively inhibit bone loss in the cancellous and cortical bones of femur and proximal tibia. CQ reduced ovariectomy-induced bone loss in the long bones in a site-specific manner. Greater effects were noted on the cancellous bone of femur followed by tibia.

Fig. 1. Effects of C. quadrangularis on cortical bone parameters of the proximal tibial metaphysis and tibia fibula junction after ovariectomy

Fig. 2. Effects of C. quadrangularis on cancellous bone parameters of distal femoral metaphysis after ovariectomy

Reference

1. Banu J, Varela E, Bahadur AN, et al. Inhibition of Bone Loss by Cissus quadrangularis in Mice: A Preliminary Report. Journal of Osteoporosis Volume 2012, Article ID 101206, 10 pages.