Interleukin-10-Producing B Cells Help Suppress Ovariectomy-Mediated Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is prevalent in elderly women and it may cause dental implant failure. In particular, estrogen deficiency in postmenopausal women leads to higher rates of osteoporosis prevalence. Immune cell-mediated effects involving the development of osteoporosis have been studied previously; however, the role of IL-10-producing regulatory B (B10) cells in osteoporosis is largely unclear. Here, we examined the role of B10 cells in osteoporosis. C57BL/6 mice were subjected to ovariectomy (OVX). Fifteen weeks after OVX surgery, the first molar of the right maxillary was extracted, and twenty-four weeks after OVX surgery, serous progression of osteoporosis was observed in the alveolar bone. Moreover, the proportion of CD19⁺CD5⁺CD1d^high regulatory B cells, B10, and CD4⁺CD25⁺FoxP3⁺ regulatory T cells from the spleen of OVX mice decreased during the progression of osteoporosis, compared to controls. In contrast to regulatory cells, IL-17-producing Th (Th17) cell levels were increased in OVX mice. Adoptive transfer of B10 cells to OVX mice led to a decrease in Th17 cell abundance and inhibited the development of osteoporosis in the alveolar bone from OVX mice. Thus, our results suggest that B10 cells may help suppress osteoporosis development.