In Vitro Cell Culture Model for Osteoclast Activation during Estrogen Withdrawal

Estrogen (17β-estradiol) deficiency post-menopause alters bone homeostasis whereby bone resorption by osteoclasts exceeds bone formation by osteoblasts, leading to osteoporosis in females. We established an in vitro model to examine the consequences of estrogen withdrawal (E2-WD) on osteoclasts derived from the mouse macrophage RAW 264.7 cell line and utilized it to investigate the mechanism behind the enhanced osteoclast activity post-menopause. We found that a greater population of osteoclasts that underwent E2-WD contained a podosome belt necessary for osteoclasts to adhere and resorb bone and possessed elevated resorptive activity compared to osteoclasts exposed to estrogen (E2) continuously. Our results show that compared to osteoclasts that received E2 continuously, those that underwent E2-WD had a faster rate of microtubule (MT) growth, reduced RhoA activation, and shorter podosome lifespan. Thus, altered podosome and MT dynamics induced by the withdrawal of estrogen supports podosome belt assembly/stability in osteoclasts, which may explain their enhanced bone resorption activity.