Three drugs may preserve spongy bone in aging female mice
In 22-month-old females, the share of spongy tissue occupied by bone was 1.08 percentage points higher with rapamycin and 1.51 with 17α-estradiol than controls.
Limit: Bone architecture is a stand-in for bone strength and fracture prevention
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
In male and female UM-HET3 mice, a randomized animal experiment tested how three drugs affected aging bone. Feed contained acarbose at 1,000 parts per million or rapamycin at 14 parts per million from four months of age. Another group received 17α-estradiol at 14.4 parts per million from 10 months. Researchers scanned shinbones collected at 12 or 22 months and compared treated mice with untreated controls.
All three drugs showed signs of preserving spongy bone in females at 22 months, although evidence for acarbose was weak. The changes mainly reflected more of the tiny struts that form spongy bone, with little evidence of thicker struts. Effects in males were generally negligible. Changes in the dense outer bone were modest, and its thickness remained largely unchanged.
Why it matters
The authors suggest that preserving aging bone and extending lifespan may involve different mechanisms.
Caveats
These bone-structure results do not establish effects on fractures or bone strength in people. The findings came from mice, and the preprint has not been peer-reviewed.
Acarbose is part of Bryan Johnson's Blueprint
The paper
Geroprotective interventions preserve trabecular bone during ageing in female mice
Insigneo; University of Sheffield
bioRxiv, Jun 19, 2026, Open access, Preprint, not peer-reviewed
