Endogenous n 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids PUFAs mitigate ovariectomy-induced bone loss by attenuating bone marrow adipogenesis in FAT1 transgenic mice

Abstract

Tian-yu Chen,1,2,* Zhong-min Zhang,1,2,* Xiao-chen Zheng,1,2 Liang Wang,1,2 Min-jun Huang,1,2 Si Qin,3 Jian Chen,1,2 Ping-lin Lai,4 Cheng-liang Yang,1,2 Jia Liu,1,2 Yi-fan Dai,5 Da-di Jin,1,2 Xiao-chun Bai1,2,4 1Department of Orthopaedic, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; 2Academy of Orthopaedics, Guangdong Province, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; 3Department of Dermatology and STD, Guangdong No.2 Provincial People's Hospital, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; 4Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medical Science, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China; 5Center of Metabolic Disease Research, Nanjing Medical University, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China *These authors contributed equally to this work Aim: To investigate the effect of endogenous n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) on bone marrow adipogenesis under osteoporosis conditions. Methods: A mouse osteoporosis model overexpressing the FAT1 gene from Caenorhabditis elegans and converting n-6 PUFAs to n-3 PUFAs endogenously was used. Results: The mice presented significantly lower bone marrow adiposity (adipocyte volume/tissue volume, mean adipocyte number) but increased the bone parameters (bone mineral density, bone mineral content, bone volume/total volume) in the distal femoral metaphysis. Conclusion: Endogenous n-3 PUFAs protect bone marrow adipogenesis, which provides a novel drug target. Keywords: antiosteoporosis, n-3 PUFAs, bone marrow, adipogenesis