Kisspeptin Hormone Enhances Activity Of Bone-Forming Cells, Study Suggests

Jun, 2022 - By SMI

A new study found that a naturally occurring hormone increases activity of cell that form bones in the body that could help treat osteoporosis in future

Prevalence of osteoporosis is rapidly increasing all over the world with 1 in 5 men and 1 in 2 women aging 50 and above likely to suffer from a fracture caused due to osteoporosis. The medication currently used for treating osteoporosis can cause various adverse effects. Now a team of researchers at Imperial College London investigated a naturally occurring hormone in the body known as kisspeptin and found that it enhances activity of cell that form bones in the body and it could be a new target for developing new osteoporosis treatment.

In past studies, it was found that subjects were able to tolerate kisspeptine injections without causing any harmful side effects. In this new research, the scientists conducted multiple experiments. In one of the experiments, the team intravenously administered a boost of kisspeptin to 26 male subjects aging 18 to 36 years for 90 minutes time period, and another group received a placebo for 90 minutes period. The team found that, the subjects’ bodies generated 24% more cells that build bones called as osteoblasts. In another experiment of the same research conducted in the University of Southern Denmark, the scientists added kisspeptine in bone cells in Petri dishes, where the hormone boosted the activity of osteoblasts and also stopped the activity of the osteoclasts, which are known as bone-degrading cells.

Earlier studies demonstrated that kisspeptine could be used in IVF and enhance sexual brain activity, however, this new study is the first one to explore benefits of this hormone in human bones. As reported by the scientists, the research is in its early phase. However, these results provide targets for future studies that could develop novel potential treatment for osteoporosis.