Abstract:

BACKGROUND: Soy isoflavones (SIF) is a type of plant estrogen that has significance for osteoporosis after menostasia.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of SIF on the femoral bone mineral density and the expression of osteoblasts estrogen receptor α in osteoblasts of ovariectomized rats.
METHODS: Thirty 12-month-old female ovariectomized rats were randomly divided into three groups: sham operation group, SIF group and control group. The rats in the SIF group and control group were excised bilateral ovarian, while the rats in the sham operation group were only performed operative approach without excision of ovarian. After the ovarian was excised, the rats in the SIF group were given SIF every day for 40 days continuously, and the rats in the control group were given the same dose of normal saline.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: After 40 days, the value of the left femoral bone mineral density in the control group was significantly lower than that of the sham operation group (P < 0.05); the expression of estrogen receptor α in osteoblasts of SIF group was higher than that of the control group (P < 0.05). These findings suggest that SIF can increase the bone mineral density, improve the expression of estrogen receptor α in osteoblasts of ovariectomized rats, and promote the proliferation of osteoblasts.