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Cortical femur response to synbiotics in aging mice
Author(s) -
Blanton Cynthia,
Tyler Morgan,
Gabaldon Annette
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.1053.4
Subject(s) - medullary cavity , femur , cortical bone , synbiotics , medicine , endocrinology , chemistry , zoology , anatomy , biology , surgery , genetics , probiotic , bacteria
Age‐related dysbiosis and bone loss might be causally related through mechanisms involving micronutrient absorption and immune function. Previous work in our laboratory showed that skeletal structure is protected by dietary synbiotics in rats exposed to simulated weightlessness. This project investigated whether these prior findings extend to a mouse model of aging. Three groups of male mice were studied: 10‐mo‐old, fed a synbiotic diet for 4 months (SYN); 10‐mo‐old, fed a control diet for 4 months (CON); 10‐mo‐old, sacrificed at time zero (BSL). The synbiotic diet contained fructooligosaccharides (31.5 g/kg diet) and Lactobacillis acidophilus + Lactococcus lactis lactis (10 12 CFUs/kg diet). Femurs were sliced in 5 μm cross‐sections at the proximal diaphysis and analyzed using digital imaging. Results showed a significant decrease in cortical wall thickness for the SYN vs. BSL mice (P<0.01). Total cross‐sectional area (CSA) increased in both SYN and CON vs. BSL mice (P<0.001), primarily due to enlargement of medullary CSA (SYN and CON vs. BSL, P<0.05), with SYN showing a greater area vs. CON mice (P<0.01). The ratio of medullary:total CSA was higher and cortical:total CSA lower in SYN vs. CON and BSL mice (P<0.01). These data suggest that synbiotics exert no benefit on cortical femur in aging mice.