| Objective To investigate the protective effect and mechanism of Gubao Wan (GBW) on tretinoin-induced osteoporosis in mice. Methods Female BALB/c mice were randomly divided into control group, model group, and GBW high dose group (GBW-H), medium dose group (GBW-M), and low dose group (GBW-L). On the days 1-30, mice in model group and GBW treated groups were treated orally with tretinoin (100 mg/kg) to establish osteoporosis model. At the same time, mice in GBW treated groups were administrated orally with GBW solution. At the end of the experiment, the femurs of the mice were collected to measure the weight, diameter, and length. The changes of femur tissue were observed with HE staining under an optical microscope. Bone mineral density (BMD) of the femurs was measured with micro-CT. The levels of BMP-2, OC, BALP, and P1NP in the serum were detected using ELISA. Results GBW significantly prevented the decrease of weight, diameter, BMD, and bone marrow tissue of the femurs in mice induced by tretinoin. Furthermore, GBW inhibited the secretion of OC and P1NP, and promoted the secretion of BMP-2 and BALP in the serum of tretinoin-induced mice. Conclusion GBW prevents from tretinoin-induced osteoporosis in mice, which may be through the protection of BMP-2 secretion and the stimulation of bone formation. |