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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Pharmacol.
Sec. Ethnopharmacology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fphar.2025.1513863

Total flavonoids isolated from Eucommia ulmoides can alleviate bone loss and regulate intestinal microbiota in ovariectomized rats

Provisionally accepted
Yun Zhang Yun Zhang 1Mingzhen Yang Mingzhen Yang 1Bowen Wang Bowen Wang 1Ningli Li Ningli Li 1Qin Li Qin Li 1Yingying Li Yingying Li 2Cory J Xian Cory J Xian 3Tie-Jun Li Tie-Jun Li 4Yuankun Zhai Yuankun Zhai 1*
  • 1 Henan University, Kaifeng, China
  • 2 Luoyang Orthopedic Traumatological Hospital, Luoyang, Henan Province, China
  • 3 UniSA Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia
  • 4 Peking University Hospital of Stomatology, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Ethnopharmacological relevance: Eucommia ulmoides, recognized as a traditional Chinese medicinal herb, can tonify liver and kidney and strengthen bones and muscles.Modern pharmacological research has proved that Eucommia ulmoides could prohibit the occurrence of osteoporosis and arthritis.Aim: To investigate the effect and action mechanism of total flavonoids isolated from the leaves of Eucommia ulmoides (TFEL) on bone loss in ovariectomized (OVX) rats, and to study its effect on intestinal flora. Materials and methods: The 3-month-old female rats were randomly divided into six groups: sham operation group, OVX model group, estradiol group, TFEL low (TFEL-L) (50), mid (-M) (100) and high (-H) (200mg/kg/d) dose groups. After 13 weeks of treatment, the rats were sacrificed to measure bone turnover markers, related tissue biochemical indices, microstructure parameters, and osteoclastogenesis promotor RANKL and inhibitor OPG expression levels. Additionally, fecal samples were obtained for high-throughput sequencing to analyze the intestinal flora. Results: Oral administration of TFEL for 13 weeks increased the serum level of bone formation marker PINP and decreased the level of bone resorption marker NTX-I. The femoral microstructure parameters of the TFEL-M and TFEL-H groups were significantly improved compared with the OVX group, which were also confirmed by H&E histological staining. High-throughput sequencing indicated that TFEL may regulate the composition of intestinal flora and intestinal microecology. Conclusions: TFEL can prevent osteoporosis in OVX rats and has no toxic side effects. Meanwhile, TFEL can increase the diversity and improve the composition of intestinal flora in OVX rats.

    Keywords: Eucommia ulmoides, Total flavonoids, Osteoporosis, Ovx, intestinal microbiota, Uterus, micro-CT

    Received: 19 Oct 2024; Accepted: 16 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Zhang, Yang, Wang, Li, Li, Li, Xian, Li and Zhai. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Yuankun Zhai, Henan University, Kaifeng, China

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