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Adipokine Effects on Bone

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Abstract

The adipocyte is an important source of factors that act as circulating regulators of bone metabolism. These include estrogens, and the adipokines, leptin, resistin, adiponectin, and probably others. Leptin acts directly on bone cells, and in some experimental models these effects are modified by its actions on the central nervous system, which impact on appetite, body weight, and insulin sensitivity. While not strictly an adipokine, insulin circulates in increased concentrations in obesity and exerts anabolic effects on bone. Adipokine levels correlate with bone turnover, suggesting that they dynamically influence bone metabolism. In postmenopausal women, they may be among the principal regulators of bone turnover, accounting for their increasing importance as determinants of bone density with age. Of the adipokines, adiponectin appears to have the strongest relationships with bone parameters in postmenopausal women.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand

    Ian R. Reid

  2. Departments of Medicine and Human Genetics, Lady Davis Institute, McGill University, H3T 1E2, Montréal, Canada

    J. B. Richards

  3. Department of Twin Research and Genetic Epidemiology, St. Thomas’ Hospital, SE1 7EH, London, UK

    J. B. Richards

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Reid, I.R., Richards, J.B. Adipokine Effects on Bone. Clinic Rev Bone Miner Metab 7, 240–248 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12018-009-9048-4

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