Bone physiology during pregnancy and lactation in young macaques

We used a nonhuman primate model (Macaca nemestrina) of adolescent human pregnancy to characterize bone remodeling at midpregnancy and at weaning and the associated changes in bone mass. In this longitudinal study, 125 nulliparous females were followed through pregnancy, 6 months of lactation, and 3 months postweaning; 13 nonpregnant females served as controls. Between early pregnancy and midpregnancy, the whole body bone mineral increased. There was no significant change between midpregnancy and parturition. Between parturition and 3 months lactation, the animals lost 3.0% of their bone mineral (p < 0.01), which was regained by 3 months after weaning. The vertebral bone mineral apparent density decreased during pregnancy and 6 months of lactation, followed by an increase during the 3 months after weaning. Calcium, phosphate, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, and osteocalcin increased significantly from midpregnancy to weaning whereas 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D values showed significant decreases. Histomorphometric measurements from bone biopsies showed significant increases in most parameters of bone formation between pregnancy and weaning. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that at midpregnancy bone formation is decreased and cancellous bone resorption may have increased. During lactation, losses occur in both cortical and cancellous bone, partially depleting the maternal reservoir of calcium, but a subsequent increase in bone formation enables restoration of bone mineral after weaning to values similar to those in the control group.