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Updated: May 9, 2026
The Creation of a Rat Model for Osteosarcopenia via Ovariectomy
Published on: February 21, 2025
Ovariectomy induces osteoporosis in the maxillary alveolar bone: an in vivo micro-CT and histomorphometric analysis
1Department of Oral and Cranio-maxillofacial Science, Shanghai 9th People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Shanghai, China.
Objective:
To investigate whether porotic changes occur in maxillary alveolar bone in ovariectomized rats.
Methods:
Thirty-two 6-week-old female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into an ovariectomy group (OVX) and a sham-ovariectomy group (sham). Twelve weeks after surgery, maxillae of 16 rats (eight OVX and eight sham) were analyzed by micro-CT. Inter-radicular alveolar bone of the maxillary first molar was reconstructed and analyzed. The remaining 16 maxillae were used for histochemistry, including hematoxylin-eosin staining and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase enzyme staining.
Results:
Three-dimensional reconstructed images of the irregular alveolar bone showed an intuitive view of porotic changes in the OVX group. The alveolar bone in OVX rats had a porous microarchitecture including lower bone mass and a looser structure of more widely separated trabeculae. Bone mineral density (BMD), bone volume fraction (BV/TV), and trabecular thickness (Tb.Th.) were significantly lower in the OVX group than those in the sham group (P < 0.05). Trabecular separation (Tb.Sp.) increased significantly in the OVX rats compared to the sham rats (P < 0.05). Histomorphometric analysis of alveolar bone also revealed porotic changes in the OVX rats. Bone area ratio significantly decreased in the OVX group compared with the sham group (P < 0.01). There were also more osteoclasts present in the alveolar bone of OVX rats compared to sham rats (P < 0.05).
Conclusion:
Ovariectomy induces osteoporosis in maxillary alveolar bone in rats, which may be related to the increased number of osteoclasts.
