Protective effect of rhaponticin on ovariectomy-induced osteoporosis in rats.

Rhaponticin is a constituent isolated from numerous medicinal herbs. It has been reported earlier that rhaponticin possesses numerous biological effects like antiallergic, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective, and antithrombosis. The goal of this exploration was to scrutinize the therapeutic potential of rhaponticin on ovariectomy (OVX)-triggered osteoporosis in rats. Female Sprague Dawley rats were arbitrarily allocated to a sham-operated control group I, group II, which underwent OVX, and groups III and IV that underwent OVX were administered with rhaponticin (10 and 20 mg/kg). Rhaponticin was supplemented orally after 4 weeks of OVX and continued for about 16 weeks. Our findings exhibit that rhaponticin prevented the BMD diminution of femurs, induced by OVX, and protected the worsening of trabecular microarchitecture that are assisted through a noteworthy decline in skeletal remodeling as noticed through the diminished status of bone markers in a dose-dependent manner (10 and 20 mg/kg). OVX rats treated with rhaponticin efficiently enhanced body weight, lipid profiles, uterine index, bone turnover markers, inflammatory markers, and augmented the incidence of calcium in the OVX rats. Rhaponticin was established to restrain the functions of acid phosphatase, estradiol, and bone gla protein in OVX rats. Also, rhaponticin displayed some beneficial effects on histomorphometric and histopathological examination. It was observed that tabular area and thickness were reinstated in sham control and rhaponticin-treated OVX rats. We recognized that rhaponticin did not induce a damaging outcome on the skeletal organization of OVX rats. Moreover, we denote that rhaponticin can be an exceptional agent for the treatment and deal with associated bone diseases.

Overview of Artificial Intelligence Applications in Chinese Medicine Therapy.

To evaluate the importance of AI technologies in modernizing traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) therapy, this article presents the systematic review of the relevant literature and explains the beneficial effects of AI technology on the TCM treatment outcomes from the experience of famous and veteran Chinese medicines, including acupuncture, Tui Na massage, and Qigong practitioners. This study also focuses on the urgent necessity to apply AI technologies to develop therapeutic models on the theme "treating the disease before it happens." Furthermore, the study also discusses the major bottlenecks and future prospects for the development of intelligent TCM treatment strategies.

Effect of teriparatide on quality of life in patients with postmenopausal osteoporosis: a retrospective cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of teriparatide on life quality in patients with postmenopausal osteoporosis. METHODS: Patients treated from January 2014 to December 2016 were retrospectively included. Patients were divided into two groups according the treatment received. Those in the teriparatide treatment group were followed up for 24 months, and patients in the control group received calcium supplements and vitamin D. Scores for back pain using a visual analog scale (VAS) and score of the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and 36-item Short Form Health Survey of life quality (SF-36) were evaluated at 3, 6, 12, and 24 months and compared between the groups. RESULTS: In total, 126 patients were included in the teriparatide treatment group and 127 in the control group. There were no significant differences between the groups concerning body mass index, bone density, VAS back pain score, ODI, and SF-36 life quality scores at baseline. At 3, 6, 12, and 24 months' follow-up, VAS scores were significantly lower in the treatment group than in controls; ODI and SF-36 scores were significantly higher in the treatment group than in the control group. CONCLUSION: Teriparatide can significantly decrease pain and increase mobility and life quality in patients with postmenopausal osteoporosis.

[Effect of electroacupuncture on the biochemical indices of bone and bone collagen metabolism and TNF-alpha in osteoporosis model rats without ovaries].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the mechanisms of electroacupuncture (EA) on postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMO). METHODS: Sixty female SD rats aged 6 months were selected, resected double ovaries and fed for 90 days in order to make the model of experimental osteoporosis, and then, they were randomly divided into a model control group (without any therapy), a routine acupoints applying group, which were treated with EA at "Pishu" (BL 20), "Weishu" (BL 21), "Shenshu" (BL 23) and "Qihaishu" (BL 24), and an EA with tonification method (EAT) group at "Guanyuan" (CV 4) and "Zusanli" (ST 36), and an EA with dispersing blood stasis method (EAD) group at "Shenshu" (BL 23), "Geshu" (BL 17) and "Dazhu" (BL 11), and an EA with tonification and dispersing blood stasis method (EATD) group at "Guanyuan" (CV 4), "Zusanli" (ST 36), "Shenshu" (BL 23), "Geshu" (BL 17) and "Dazhu" (BL 11), 12 rats in each group. EA therapy was performed once a day, 30 min each time. Then these rats rested for 1 day after consecutive treatment for 6 days. The treatment lasted for 12 weeks. Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to examine the level of TNF-alpha, and the level of E2, osteocalin (BGP) and carboxyterminal propeptide of type I procollagen (PICP), carboxyterminal telopeptide of type I lollagen (ICTP) by radioimmunoassay, and alkaline phosphatase by p-nitrophenylphosphate method, and Ca, P, Deoxypyridinoline (DPD) and creatinine (Cr) in urine were detected by automatic biochemistry analyzer. RESULTS: Compared with model control group, the level of DPD/Cr, Ca/Cr, and the serum contents of ALP, BGP, TNF-alpha and ICTP in all EA groups decreased significantly (all P < 0.01), the level of E2 and PICP in serum increased significantly (all P < 0.01). Compared with EATD group, the level of DPD/Cr and Ca/Cr in the other three EA groups had no statistical differences (all P > 0.05), but the level of ALP, BGP, TNF-alpha and ICTP in serum increased significantly (all P < 0.01), the level of E2 and PICP in serum decreased significantly (all P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Acupuncture can reduce significantly the level of DPD/Cr, Ca/Cr, and the serum contents of ALP, BGP, TNF-alpha and ICTP, increase significantly the level of E2 and PICP in PMO model rats and EA with tonification and dispersing blood stasis method is superior significantly to the other routine acupuncture methods.