Mulberry compound prevented bone loss in two mouse models
Preventive dosing for six or eight weeks preserved bone in female mice after ovary removal and male mice fed a high-fat diet.
Our read
Interventions- Studied:
- Experiments in mice with ovariectomy- or diet-induced osteoporosis, six weeks; 8 weeks
- What changed:
- DNJ reduced trabecular bone volume loss by 47.2% in high-fat-fed mice compared with saline-treated mice
- The catch:
- Bone scans included only 5–7 DNJ-treated ovariectomized mice and 6 DNJ-treated high-fat-fed mice
- In the record:
- One of 3 papers on 1-deoxynojirimycin on record: none yet with results in people, 2 in animals.
Editor of record: Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
Female and male C57BL/6J mice received 1-deoxynojirimycin, a mulberry compound, in experiments modeling osteoporosis, a disease that weakens bones. Females underwent ovary removal to cause estrogen deficiency; males ate a high-fat diet. Mice were randomly assigned to the compound or saline. Females received daily abdominal injections of 20 milligrams per kilogram of body weight for six weeks. Males received 20 milligrams per kilogram for eight weeks.
The compound prevented bone loss in both models. Treated mice had more bone-building cells and fewer cells that break down bone. In separate experiments with mouse cells grown in the lab, it helped cells develop bone-building functions and deposit minerals. The authors reported that it bound to LRP5, a cell-surface signaling protein, activating signals that increased the activity of bone-formation genes.
Why it matters
Bone formation is a target for addressing osteoporosis, an aging-related disease. The authors suggest the compound is a candidate for osteoporosis prevention and treatment.
Caveats
Preventive dosing in these mouse models does not show whether the compound would treat established osteoporosis in people.
Where the evidence stands
1-deoxynojirimycin
- 3 independent labs in 2 countries
- Funders: National Natural Science Foundation of China and 1 more
LRP5
- 7 independent labs in 5 countries
- Funders: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases and 8 more
- 5 of 13 findings with company ties
- 1-deoxynojirimycin
- LRP5
- Stem cell differentiation
- Wnt/β-catenin signaling
- Osteoporosis
- Estrogen deficiency
The paper
1‐Deoxynojirimycin Alleviates Osteoporosis via Promoting LRP5 Signaling in Osteoblasts and BMSCs
Key Laboratory of Precision Nutrition and Food Quality
Phytotherapy Research, Nov 9, 2026, Open access, CC BY-NC-ND
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