Effect of Calcitriol on Bone Mineral Density and Bone Metabolism in Osteoporotic Rats

Bilateral ovaries of 20 female SD rats were surgically resected. Four weeks after surgery, osteoporotic rat models were copied and randomly divided into a calcitriol group and a model group, with 10 rats in each group. The ovaries of another 10 rats were detached but not removed as a sham-operated group. After 12 weeks of continuous administration in each group of rats, the results showed that calcitriol increased the BMD values, reduced the levels of bone formation indicators ALP, BALP, UcOC and PINP, increased the levels of bone resorption indicators TRAP5a, TRAP5b and NTX, reduced CTX levels, and increased mRNA expression levels of Bglap and Runx2 in osteoporotic rats. In conclusion, calcitriol may become an effective drug therapy for treating osteoporosis, and its mechanism of action may be related to improving bone metabolism, promoting bone formation, and increasing bone mineral density.