Bisphosphonate effects on alveolar bone during rat molar drifting.

The remodeling of bone during molar drifting and cortical growth in the rat maxilla and the effects of dichloromethylene bisphosphonate (Cl2MBP) on these processes were investigated in 30 age-matched rats. A control group of six rats was killed at 10 weeks of age. Beginning at 10 weeks of age, 12 rats were treated with daily subcutaneous injections of Cl2MBP (10 mg/kg), and 12 control rats were injected daily with normal saline. Six rats of each group were killed at 12 and at 20 weeks of age. All rats were injected with fluorescent bone labels eight and one days before termination. Calcified and decalcified vertical sections through the lingual roots of maxillary molars were prepared for histomorphometry. Bone apposition rates, remodeling activity, and bone cell populations were quantified by image analysis on depository and resorptive surfaces of alveolar bone and on cortical bone surfaces. The drift rates of the first and second molars were calculated. Results showed that in control animals the drift rate of the first molar exceeded that of the second molar (p less than 0.05), supporting a previously proposed mechanism for age-dependent narrowing of interdental bone. Cl2MBP treatment decreased remodeling activity on resorptive surfaces of alveolar bone, despite a transient increase in osteoclasts. Cl2MBP also decreased the osteoblast number and bone apposition rate on depository surfaces of alveolar bone, and reduced the rate of molar drifting (p less than 0.05). However, Cl2MBP treatment had no detectable effect on osteoblast number or bone apposition on cortical bone surfaces. These results support the concept that bisphosphonates influence bone formation indirectly through a coupling mechanism which links formation with resorption.