A Comparative Study on the Effect of Oestradiol Replacement Therapy, Clomiphene Citrate Treatment and Calcium Supplementation Plus Vitamin D3 on Bone of Senile Rats

Abstract

Osteoporosis among older women is a major public health problem. The current work studied the effects of three approaches to the prevention of bone loss in senile female rats. The study compares the effect of oestradiol replacement (100 ug/kg body wt), clomiphene citrate treatment (5 mg/kg body wt) and calcium supplementation plus vitamin D3 (250 mg+ 100 IU/ kg body wt). The doses were given day after day throughout four weeks respectively. Some major somatic indices (femur done, uterus and brain) and the mineral contents (calcium, phosphorous, magnesium) were measured. Also, alkaline phosphatase and total proteins in the blood serum and femur bone, urinary calcium/ creatinine ratio, ribonucleic and deoxyribonucleic acids (RNA and DNA) in bone as well as the measurement of serum oestradiol and parathyroid hormones were determined. Concerning control senile group all the parameters under investigation confirmed the reduction in bone density, as decrement in femur bone index, decrease in mineral contents (calcium, phosphorous and magnesium) with increase in calcium/creatinine ration. Also disturbances in alkaline phosphatase activity with decrease in total protein and RNA & DNA contents in bone, and a significant decrease in oestradiol and parathyroid hormone were observed. After using the three treatment (oestradiol, clomiphene citrate and calcium supplementation plus vitamin D3), all the parameters tended to restore the deficient in bone density, but oestradiol was the most efficient therapy with some side effects as an obvious enlargement in uterus relative weight (+ 85.71%) and also a significant increase in brain relative weight (+10.11%). These results have important implications for preventing oesteoporosis. It may be appropriate to advice women with intermediate bone-density values to adopt the clacium supplementation plus vitamin D3 or clomiphene citrate regimen.