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Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) protects ovariectomized rats fed with high-saturated fat-sucrose diet from bone loss

Osteoporosis International volume 29, pages 223–235 (2018)Cite this article

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Abstract

Summary

Dietary patterns may interfere with the efficacy of herbal intervention. Our results demonstrated the protective effects of Salvia miltiorrhiza aqueous extract (SMA) on bone metabolism were influenced by levels of dietary fat and sucrose in ovariectomized (OVX) rats through its actions on attenuating lipid deposition and oxidative stress in rats.

Introduction

Salvia miltiorrhiza (SM), also known as Danshen, has been tested as an osteoporosis treatment in a series of small, short human trials that generally report improvements in bone property. However, dietary patterns may interfere with the effects of herbal intervention. We hypothesized that dietary fat and sucrose levels could influence the effects of SM supplementation on bone in estrogen-deficient animals.

Methods

Six-month-old Sprague-Dawley sham or OVX rats were fed either a low-saturated fat-sucrose (LFS, a diet that was similar in composition to normal rat chow) or a high-fat-sucrose (HFS) diet and OVX rats were treated (8 rats/group) with SM aqueous extract (SMA, 600 mg/kg/day), 17β-estradiol (1 mg/kg/day), or vehicle for 12 weeks.

Results

SMA significantly improved bone properties as revealed by the increase in trabecular bone mineral density and decrease in trabecular separation at proximal metaphysis of the tibia (PT) in HFS-fed OVX rats, but not in LFS-fed OVX rats. SMA greatly reduced lipid deposition and malondialdehyde levels, improved the activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase in the livers of HFS-fed OVX rats. SMA could directly improve the proliferation and differentiation in vitro in an H2O2-induced preosteoblast cell model by attenuating cellular reactive oxygen species levels.

Conclusions

The protective effects of SMA on bone metabolism were influenced by dietary fat and sucrose levels in OVX rats. The ability of SMA to reduce bone loss in HFS-fed OVX rats was associated with the attenuation of lipid deposition and oxidative stress levels.

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Abbreviations

ANOVA:

analysis of variance

ALP:

alkaline phosphatase

BMC:

bone mineral content

BMD:

bone mineral density

BV/TV:

ratio of bone volume to total volume

Ca:

calcium

CAT:

catalase

Conn-Des:

connectivity density

Cr:

creatinine

Ct.Th:

average cortical thickness

Ct.V/Tt.V:

ratio of cortical bone volume to total volume

DA:

degree of anisotropy

DCFH-DA:

2′,7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescin diacetate

FBS:

fetal bovine serum

GPx:

glutathione peroxidase

HFS:

high fat-sucrose

H2O2 :

hydrogen peroxide

LFS:

low fat-sucrose

Ma.Ar:

marrow area

MDA:

malondialdehyde

MEM:

minimal essential medium eagle

μCT:

microcomputed tomography

MT:

tibia midshaft

MTS:

3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium

OS:

oxidative stress

OVX:

ovariectomized

P:

phosphorus

PMS:

phenazine methosulfate

PT:

proximal metaphysis of the tibia

ROS:

reactive oxygen species

SEM:

standard error of mean

SHAM:

sham-operation

SM:

Salvia miltiorrhiza

SMA:

Salvia miltiorrhiza aqueous extract

SMI:

structure model index

SOD:

superoxide dismutase

Tb. BMD:

trabecular bone mineral density

Tb.N:

trabecular number

Tb.Sp:

trabecular separation

Tb.Th:

trabecular thickness

Tt.Ar:

total cross-sectional area inside the periosteal envelope

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Acknowledgements

We thank the Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Food Biological Safety and the State Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicine and Molecular Pharmacology (Incubation) for their support.

Funding

This work was supported by the Shenzhen Basic Research Program (grant number JCYJ20140819153305696), the Shenzhen Basic Research Program (grant number JCY201506301152579000), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number 81528024), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number 81601110).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicine and Molecular Pharmacology (Incubation), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University Shenzhen Research Institute, Shenzhen, People’s Republic of China

    X. L. Dong, W. X. Yu, C. M. Li & M. S. Wong

  2. Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Y806, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China

    X. L. Dong, W. X. Yu, S. He, L. P. Zhou, C. W. Poon & M. S. Wong

  3. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Guangdong Pharmaceutical College, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China

    C. M. Li

Authors
  1. X. L. Dong
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  2. W. X. Yu
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  3. C. M. Li
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  4. S. He
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  5. L. P. Zhou
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  7. M. S. Wong
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Contributions

Xiao Li Dong and Man Sau Wong designed the experiment; Xiao Li Dong, Wen Xuan Yu, and Chun Mei Li conducted most of the experiments and analyzed the data; Shan He did cell culture experiments; Li Ping Zhou detected the oxidant/antioxidant levels in the liver of the experiment; Chui Wa Poon analyzed the microCT data; Man Sau Wong had primary responsibility for the final content. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to M. S. Wong.

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Cite this article

Dong, X.L., Yu, W.X., Li, C.M. et al. Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) protects ovariectomized rats fed with high-saturated fat-sucrose diet from bone loss. Osteoporos Int 29, 223–235 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00198-017-4254-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00198-017-4254-2

Keywords

  • Bone loss
  • Estrogen deficiency
  • High-saturated fat-sucrose diet
  • Oxidative stress
  • Salvia miltiorrhiza aqueous extract