Scimeca Manuel, Feola Maurizio, Romano Lorenzo, Rao Cecilia, Gasbarra Elena, Bonanno Elena, Brandi Maria Luisa, Tarantino Umberto
Department of Spatial Biomedicine, Italian Space Agency (ASI), via Del Politecnico Snc, Rome, 00133.
Anatomic Pathology Section, Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome "Tor Vergata,", via Montpellier 1, Rome, 00133, Italy.
Environ Toxicol. 2017 Apr;32(4):1333-1342. doi: 10.1002/tox.22327. Epub 2016 Jul 27.
Bone metabolism is affected by mechanical, genetic, and environmental factors and plays a major role in osteoporosis. Nevertheless, the influence of environmental pollution on the occurrence of osteoporosis is still unclear and controversial. In this context, heavy metals are the most important pollutants capable to affect bone mass. The aim of this study was to investigate whether heavy metals accumulation in bone tissues could be related to the altered bone metabolism and architecture of osteoporotic patients. To this end, we analyzed 25 bone head biopsies osteoporotic patients and 25 bone head biopsies of osteoarthritic patients. Moreover we enrolled 15 patients underwent hip arthroplasty for high-energy hip fracture or osteonecrosis of the femoral head as a control group. Bone head biopsies were studied by BioQuant-osteo software, scanning electron microscopy and Energy Dispersive X-ray microanalysis. We found a prevalence of lead, cadmium and chromium accumulation in osteoporotic patients. Noteworthy, high levels of sclerostin, detected by immunohistochemistry, correlate with the accumulation of heavy metal found in the bone of osteoporotic patients, suggesting a molecular link between heavy metal accumulation and bone metabolism impairment. In conclusion, the presence of heavy metals into bone shed new light on the comprehension of the pathogenesis of osteoporosis since these elements could play a non redundant role in the development of osteoporosis at cellular/molecular and epigenetic level. Nevertheless, in vivo and in vitro studies need to better elucidate the molecular mechanism in which heavy metals can participate to osteoporosis. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol 32: 1333-1342, 2017.
骨代谢受机械、遗传和环境因素影响，在骨质疏松症中起主要作用。然而，环境污染对骨质疏松症发生的影响仍不明确且存在争议。在此背景下，重金属是能够影响骨量的最重要污染物。本研究的目的是调查骨组织中重金属积累是否与骨质疏松症患者骨代谢和骨结构改变有关。为此，我们分析了25例骨质疏松症患者的股骨头活检样本和25例骨关节炎患者的股骨头活检样本。此外，我们纳入了15例因高能髋部骨折或股骨头坏死接受髋关节置换术的患者作为对照组。通过BioQuant-osteo软件、扫描电子显微镜和能量色散X射线微分析对股骨头活检样本进行研究。我们发现骨质疏松症患者中铅、镉和铬积累普遍存在。值得注意的是，免疫组织化学检测到的高水平硬化素与骨质疏松症患者骨骼中发现的重金属积累相关，提示重金属积累与骨代谢受损之间存在分子联系。总之，骨中重金属的存在为理解骨质疏松症的发病机制提供了新线索，因为这些元素可能在细胞/分子和表观遗传水平的骨质疏松症发展中发挥非冗余作用。然而，体内和体外研究需要更好地阐明重金属参与骨质疏松症的分子机制。© 2016威利期刊公司。《环境毒理学》32: 1333 - 1342, 2017。
