Let’s face it: women hate taking Fosamax for osteoporosis. It’s a pain to administer (you can’t eat for an hour before and after the dose, you have to stay standing up for an hour after), it upsets the stomach, and it can cause serious jaw complications after dental surgery. Furthermore, it’s only mildly effective in slowing bone loss.
Well, here’s some encouraging basic research from the latest issue of Nature Medicine. It turns out serotonin produced by the gut has a powerful inhibiting effect on bone synthesis. Vijay Yadov and colleagues have tested a compound (”LP533401″) that inhibits synthesis of gut-derived serotonin, and found that it prevents osteoporosis in rats who’ve had their ovaries removed; and improves bone density in rats who already have osteoporosis.
Here’s a picture of the molecular structure of TPH-1, the first enzyme needed to synthesize gut derived serotonin, being blocked by LP533401.
Blocking serotonin formation in the gut improves bone density in rats
Serotonin is an interesting chemical – in the brain, it is a neurotransmitter that plays a role in migraines and depression. Happily, the compound administered in the study does not cross the blood-brain barrier, and thus does not interfere with brain functions that depend on serotonin.
It will be a while before this is tested in humans (if it ever gets to that stage) but it’s encouraging to know that there are promising new ways to improve bone mass and prevent fractures in post-menopausal women.
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