INTERMITTENT THREE-MONTH TREATMENT WITH UKRAIN IN INTACT AND OVARIECTOMIZED RATS. PART II: EFFECT ON BONE MINERAL DENSITY OF THE FEMUR

JABŁOŃSKI M.,¹ GORZELAK M.,¹ PATYRA M.,¹ JAGIEŁŁO-WÓJTOWICZ E.²

1) Department of Orthopedics, Medical University, Lublin, Poland.
2) Department of Toxicology, Medical University, Lublin, Poland.

Address for correspondence: E. Jagliełło-Wójtowicz, Department of Toxicology, Medical University, Chodźki 7, 20-093 Lublin, Poland. Tel/Fax: +48-81-74732 14.

Summary: Ukrain, an acid alkaloid derivative of Chelidonium majus L., was administered intraperitoneally to ovariectomized and control sexually mature female rats at doses of 7, 14 and 28 mg/kg once daily for 10 days, followed by 10-day break. This procedure was repeated five times. At the end of the Ukrain treatment (24 h after the last dose of the drug) the right femora of the rats were harvested and the bone densitometric parameters of the whole bone and distal metaphysial and intertrochanteric subregions were assessed using the dual energy x-ray absorptiometry densitometric method. The results showed no apparent decrease in bone mineral density in groups of rats studied. A nearly significant (p = 0.08) decrease of bone mineral content was observed in ovariectomized rats treated with 14 mg/kg of Ukrain.