What can elderly people with osteoporosis and prone to fractures do? This strain of bacteria is here to help!

Osteoporosis is a systemic skeletal disease characterized by reduced bone mass and deterioration of the bone’s microarchitecture. It makes bones more fragile and prone to fracture even under minor external force. It is caused by multiple factors (such as age, gender, nutrition, lifestyle, etc.) that lead to abnormal bone metabolism, in which the rate of bone resorption exceeds that of bone formation, resulting in reduced bone quality and strength.

The dangers of osteoporosis in the elderly

① Fractures from minor falls – osteoporosis may be the culprit!
Osteoporosis makes bones weak and highly susceptible to fractures.

② Chronic pain, diminished quality of life
Patients with osteoporosis often suffer from chronic pain, which may occur in the lower back, hips, knees, and other joints.

③ Loss of height, spinal deformities!
As bone mass is lost, elderly individuals may experience height loss and a hunched back. This not only affects their appearance but may also lead to spinal deformities, further impacting respiratory and digestive functions.

④ Fear of exercise, decline in cardiopulmonary function!
Due to fragile bones, they may be afraid to engage in adequate physical activity, leading to decreased cardiopulmonary function and an increased risk of heart and lung diseases.

⑤ Decline in overall quality of life
Because of pain, limited mobility, and reduced cardiopulmonary function, osteoporosis can severely lower the quality of life in the elderly.

Strain experiment
Bifidobacterium lactis F1-7 alleviates trabecular bone resorption.

Groups:
Sham: control group; OVX: model group; OVX+FL228.1: model + probiotic FL228.1 group; OVX+F1-7: model + probiotic F1-7 group.

Femoral histomorphology with H&E staining intuitively reveals changes in the microarchitecture of cancellous bone within the bone marrow cavity, which helps to further evaluate the bone microstructural status. By analyzing changes in the cancellous bone microarchitecture in the bone marrow cavity, the bone microstructural status can be assessed. H&E staining showed a decrease in the percentage of trabecular bone area in the bone marrow cavity of OVX mice, while probiotic intervention preserved trabecular bone to varying degrees.

Compared with the sham group mice, the femoral microarchitecture of the OVX group mice was severely damaged: the trabecular bone became thinner, its density decreased, and the arrangement was sparse. However, intervention with strains FL228.1 and F1-7 helped improve the trabecular bone microarchitecture, thereby contributing to the amelioration of osteoporosis.

Bifidobacterium Lactis F1-7 alleviates femoral microarchitecture loss

Groups:
Sham: control group; OVX: model group; OVX+FL228.1: model + probiotic FL228.1 group; OVX+F1-7: model + probiotic F1-7 group.

BMD reflects the bone mineral density of the femur, while BV/TV indicates changes in bone mass; both typically decrease in osteoporosis. Tb.N, Tb.Sp, and SMI describe the spatial morphological structure of trabecular bone. In osteoporosis, Tb.N decreases, while Tb.Sp correspondingly increases. SMI describes the ratio of plate-like to rod-like structures in trabecular bone architecture, and its value is related to the measurement of surface convexity. This parameter is very important in osteoporotic degradation of trabecular bone. In osteoporosis, SMI usually shows an increasing trend.

The results showed that Probiotics F1-7 and FL228.1 significantly alleviated femoral microarchitecture loss in estrogendeficient mice, improved bone health, and alleviated osteoporosis.