Berberine reshapes gut microbiota and attenuates bone loss in estrogen-deficient osteoporosis via the gut-bone axis
Abstract
Postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMO) is a metabolic bone disorder characterized by estrogen deficiency-induced bone loss, deterioration of bone microstructure, and increased fracture risk. Current therapeutic agents are limited in efficacy and may have adverse effects. Berberine, a traditional Chinese medicinal compound, exhibits multitarget regulatory potential. However, its mechanism of action in alleviating PMO through modulation of the gut microbiota remains unclear. The objectives of this study are to assess the potential of berberine in mitigating estrogen deficiency-induced osteoporosis through modulation of the gut microbiota and to elucidate its underlying mechanisms. An ovariectomy (OVX)-induced PMO mouse model was established and divided into control, model, and berberine-treated (100 mg/kg/day) groups. Bone microstructure was examined using micro-CT, gut microbiota composition was analyzed through 16S rRNA sequencing; inflammatory factors and bone metabolism markers were evaluated using immunofluorescence; western blotting, qRT-PCR, and serum cytokine levels were quantified using ELISA. Berberine effectively reversed the OVX-induced gut dysbiosis by restoring the diminished levels of norank_f_Muribaculaceae and mitigating the elevated abundance of Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group, norank_f_Lachnospiraceae, and Roseburia. This modulation led to the suppression of intestinal inflammation, evidenced by decreased expression of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α, and an…
Read the paper
Related studies
- Bile Acid 7α-Dehydroxylating Gut Bacteria Secrete Antibiotics that Inhibit Clostridium difficile: Role of Secondary Bile Acids
- Ketogenic diet alleviates colitis by reduction of colonic group 3 innate lymphoid cells through altering gut microbiome
- Altered gut microbiome composition and function are associated with gut barrier dysfunction in healthy relatives of patients with Crohn's disease
- Diet, obesity, and the gut microbiome as determinants modulating metabolic outcomes in a non-human primate model
- Immune Impairment Associated with Vitamin A Deficiency: Insights from Clinical Studies and Animal Model Research
- Glyphosate-based herbicides influence antioxidants, reproductive hormones and gut microbiome but not reproduction: A long-term experiment in an avian model
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.