| Objective To investigate the protective effect of asiatic acid on bone loss in mice with hyperlipidemia. Methods Sixty 8-week-old male SPF C57 BL/6J mice were randomly divided into 6 groups, with 10 mice per group: CON group (saline: 5 ml/kg/d), HFD group (saline: 5 ml/kg/d), HFD+AA-L group (AA: 5 ml/kg/d), HFD+AA-M group (AA: 10 ml/kg/d), HFD+AA-H group (AA: 20 ml/kg/d), and HFD+SIM group (SIM: 20 ml/kg/d). Mice in each group were fed with high-fat diet for 16 weeks except in CON group. Meanwhile, asiatic acid and simvastatin were orally administered for intervention. At the end of the experiment, the serum, bilateral femurs and tibias were collected. Result After feeding with high-fat diet, the serum levels of cholesterol (TC), malondialdehyde (MDA), and C-telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX-I) increased, and the serum levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and propeptide of type I procollagen (PINP) decreased. Bone mineral density decreased, bone microstructure was destroyed in the proximal tibias, and the value of biomechanical parameters of the femur decreased. The levels of TC, MDA, and CTX-I decreased in HFD+AA-M, HFD+AA-H, and HFD+SIM group (P<0.05), but the levels of SOD and PINP increased (P<0.05). Bone mineral density increased, bone microstructure improved, and the biomechanical indexes increased. The effect in HFD+AA-H group was slightly better than in HFD+AA-M group, but slightly less than in HFD+SIM group. The serum parameters, bone mineral density, bone microstructure, and bone biomechanical indexes were not changed in HFD+AA-L group. Conclusion Oral administration of asiatic acid (10, 20mg/kg/d) prevents bone loss via promoting bone formation, inhibiting bone absorption, and increasing the antioxidant capacity in mice with hyperlipidemia. |