Abstract

Osteoporosis is a common skeletal disease in which bone resorption exceeds bone formation. Intestinal health has been linked to reduced osteoporosis. The aim of this study was to compare the anti-osteoporotic and intestinal health effects of two strains of Lactobacillus plantarum (AR237 and AR495) in ovariectomized (ovx) C57BL/6 mice. The results showed that AR495 significantly inhibited ovx-induced bone loss, reduced intestinal permeability, increased the expression of tight junction proteins, claudin-family proteins, zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1), and junctional adhesion molecule 3 (JAM-3) in ovx mice. Furthermore, AR495 inhibited bone resorption by modulating the receptor activator for nuclear factor kappa B (RANK)/RANK ligand (RANKL)/osteoprotegerin (OPG) system, and ameliorated ovx-induced intestinal inflammatory responses. AR495 improved intestinal microbial stability, and increased the abundance of short-chain fatty acids (SCFA)-producing bacteria and fecal SCFA content of ovx mice. Overall, the findings of this study showed that AR495 was more effective than AR237 at treating osteoporosis.