Lactobacillus plantarum AR495 improves bone health of ovariectomized mice by improving gut microbiota

Abstract

Osteoporosis is a common skeletal disease, especially for the bone health of menopausal women. It is reported that the changes of intestinal environment could affect the occurrence and development of osteoporosis. This study aims to explore the effects of different gut microbiota by antibiotics and bone health in ovariectomized (OVX) C57BL/6 mice and to research the anti‐osteoporosis effect of Lactobacillus plantarum AR495. The results showed that the gut microbiota could alleviate the bone mass loss after treatment of metronidazole, but the bone loss was aggravated after neomycin disturbing the microbiota. Gut microbiota significantly affected bone resorption in OVX mice by regulating intestinal barrier permeability. Through intestinal microbiological analysis, it was found that the abundance of Bifidobacterium and Eubacterium xylanophilum was positively correlated with bone health. In addition, L. plantarum AR495 could restore gut microbiota to normal level in OVX mice, increase the abundance of E. xylanophilum, reduce the expression of osteoclast promoting factors IL‐1, IL‐6, IL‐17, and TNF‐α in tibia, subsequently inhibit receptor activator of NF‐κB ligand/receptor activator of NF‐κB/osteoprotegerin (RANKL/RANK/OPG) pathway. Overall, this finding showed that L. plantarum AR495 reduces bone resorption and effectively improving osteoporosis through gut microbiota.