Time and Dose-Dependent Effects of Labisia pumila on Bone Oxidative Status of Postmenopausal Osteoporosis Rat Model

Postmenopausal osteoporosis can be associated with oxidative stress and deterioration of antioxidant enzymes. It is mainly treated with estrogen replacement therapy (ERT). Although effective, ERT may cause adverse effects such as breast cancer and pulmonary embolism. Labisia pumila var. alata (LP), a herb used traditionally for women's health was found to protect against estrogen-deficient osteoporosis. An extensive study was conducted in a postmenopausal osteoporosis rat model using several LP doses and duration of treatments to determine if anti-oxidative mechanisms were involved in its bone protective effects. Ninety-six female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into six groups; baseline group (BL), sham-operated (Sham), ovariectomised control (OVXC), ovariectomised (OVX) and given 64.5 mu g/kg of Premarin (ERT), ovariectomised and given 20 mg/kg of LP (LP20) and ovariectomised and given 100 mg/kg of LP (LP100). The groups were further subdivided to receive their respective treatments via daily oral gavages for three, six or nine weeks of treatment periods. Following euthanization, the femora were dissected out for bone oxidative measurements which include superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. Results: The SOD levels of the sham-operated and all the treatment groups were significantly higher than the OVX groups at all treatment periods. The GPx level of ERT and LP100 groups at the 9th week of treatment were significantly higher than the baseline and OVX groups. MDA level of the OVX group was significantly higher than all the other groups at weeks 6 and 9. The LP20 and LP100 groups at the 9th week of treatment had significantly lower MDA levels than the ERT group. There were no significant differences between LP20 and LP100 for all parameters. Thus, LP supplementations at both doses, which showed the best results at 9 weeks, may reduce oxidative stress which in turn may prevent bone loss via its anti-oxidative property.