The effect of diabetes mellitus on rat mandibular bone formation and microarchitecture

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM) on the structure of mandibular bone and on the changes of alveolar/jaw bone formation. Experimental DM was induced in 3-wk-old male Wistar rats by a single dose of 60 mg/kg body weight of streptozotocin. All rats were injected with calcein on days 21 and 28. The rats were killed when 8 wk of age. Bone structure was analyzed by bone histomorphometry, microcomputed tomography (micro-CT), and histological section. Histomorphometric analysis showed that the mineral apposition and the bone formation rates in most of the mandibular regions were significantly decreased in the DM group compared with the control group. Micro-CT analysis showed significant deterioration of the bone quality in rats with DM. For a histometric measure of bone resorption, the number of osteoclasts along the distal surface of the alveolar wall was counted. The number of osteoclasts was significantly lower in the rats with DM than in the controls. These findings suggest that uncontrolled DM decreases mandibular bone formation, reduces the rate of bone turnover in the alveolar wall surrounding the root, and affects the quality of bone structure resulting in retardation of its skeletal development.