Abstract
BackgroundAccumulating evidence suggests that Fructus Ligustri Lucidi (FLL) plays a beneficial role in preventing the development of osteoporosis. However, the effects of FLL on estrogen receptor (ER) α and ERβ expressions remain unknown. Therefore, in the current study we attempted to probe into the effects of FLL on ERα and ERβ expressions in femurs, tibias and uteri of ovariectomized (OVX) rats.MethodsThe OVX rats were orally administrated with FLL water extract (3.5 g/kg/day) for 12 weeks. The uteri, femurs, tibias and serum were harvested from rats. The serum levels of estrogen (E2), luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) were determined by ELISA. The expressions of ERα and ERβ in the femurs and tibias as well as uteri were analysed by western blot and immunohistochemical staining.ResultsFLL treatment did not increase uterus relative weight in OVX rats. Further, FLL treatment increased ERα expression in the femurs and tibias, and enhanced ERβ expression in the uteri of OVX rats. However, the resulted expression of ERα was stronger than that of ERβ in OVX rats in response to FLL treatment. Meanwhile, administration with FLL to OVX rats increased FSH and LH but did not increase E2 level in the serum.ConclusionFLL treatment shows tissue selection on ERα and ERβ expressions in the femurs and tibias as well as uteri of OVX rats without uterotrophic effect, which may offer the scientific evidence of the efficiency and safety of its clinical application.
Highlights
Accumulating evidence suggests that Fructus Ligustri Lucidi (FLL) plays a beneficial role in preventing the development of osteoporosis
Effects of FLL on E2, luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels in serum As shown in Table 2, serum E2 level was decreased, and serum LH and FSH levels were increased in the OVX control group rats as compared to those of rats in the Sham control group
In the current study, we demonstrated that FLL treatment decreased serum LH and FSH levels but not increased serum E2 level in OVX rats
Summary
Accumulating evidence suggests that Fructus Ligustri Lucidi (FLL) plays a beneficial role in preventing the development of osteoporosis. The effects of FLL on estrogen receptor (ER) α and ERβ expressions remain unknown. In the current study we attempted to probe into the effects of FLL on ERα and ERβ expressions in femurs, tibias and uteri of ovariectomized (OVX) rats. FLL extracts have been demonstrated to improve bone quality in diabetic mice [12] and growing female rats [13] through regulation of calcium metabolism via stimulating parathyroid production. We [14] and others [15] demonstrated that aqueous extracts of FLL improved bone mineral density (BMD) and bone microstructure in ovariectomized (OVX) rats via regulation of collagen metabolism. The present study is aimed to explore the effects of FLL on ERα and ERβ expressions in the femurs, tibias and uteri as well as its effects on uterus weight in OVX rats
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