Streckwall Lucas, Colareda Germán A, Escudero Daiana, Diaz Romina G, Fernández Juan M
Laboratorio de Investigaciones en Osteopatías y Metabolismo Mineral (LIOMM), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata (UNLP)-Centro de Investigaciones Científicas (CIC), La Plata B1900, Argentina.
Farmacología-GFEYEC, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata (UNLP), La Plata B1900, Argentina.
Biology (Basel). 2025 Jun 3;14(6):650. doi: 10.3390/biology14060650.
The goal of gender-affirming hormone therapy (GAHT) is to align an individual's physical characteristics with their gender identity by suppressing endogenous sex hormones and replacing them with those consistent with their gender. Transgender women undergoing GAHT are at higher risk of cardiovascular complications, and since clinical evidence suggests that hypertension is associated with increased bone loss, we investigated the effects of estrogen treatment on bone health in a hypertensive transgender animal model. Male spontaneously hypertensive rats were orchiectomized (Orch), and half of them received estrogen treatment (Orch + Es), while a third group remained intact as controls. Bone marrow progenitor cells (BMPCs) were isolated to assess osteogenic potential, and femurs were collected for histological and mechanical analysis. BMPCs from Orch + Es rats exhibited enhanced osteogenic potential compared to those from Orch rats. Histological analysis revealed a higher number of osteocytes and fewer adipocytes in the Orch + Es group. Mechanical testing showed reduced bone strength in Orch rats, which was partially preserved in Orch + Es animals. In conclusion, estrogen administration mitigated the deleterious effects of testosterone depletion on BMPCs and provided protective effects on bone structure and strength in this preclinical model of GAHT in hypertensive rats.
性别肯定激素疗法（GAHT）的目标是通过抑制内源性性激素并用与个体性别相符的激素替代，使个体的身体特征与其性别认同相一致。接受GAHT的跨性别女性患心血管并发症的风险更高，而且由于临床证据表明高血压与骨质流失增加有关，我们在一个高血压跨性别动物模型中研究了雌激素治疗对骨骼健康的影响。对雄性自发性高血压大鼠进行去势手术（Orch），其中一半接受雌激素治疗（Orch + Es），而第三组保持完整作为对照。分离骨髓祖细胞（BMPC）以评估成骨潜力，并收集股骨进行组织学和力学分析。与来自Orch大鼠的BMPC相比，来自Orch + Es大鼠的BMPC表现出增强的成骨潜力。组织学分析显示，Orch + Es组的骨细胞数量更多，脂肪细胞数量更少。力学测试表明，Orch大鼠的骨强度降低，而在Orch + Es动物中部分得到保留。总之，在这个高血压大鼠GAHT临床前模型中，给予雌激素减轻了睾酮耗竭对BMPC的有害影响，并对骨骼结构和强度提供了保护作用。
