Osteoporosis Research Highlights

Basic and clinical research in the field of osteoporosis have made a big difference in how the condition is treated. One example is the development of a derivative of parathyroid hormone (PTH) for the treatment of osteoporosis.

Parathyroid glands, which are located in the neck, produce PTH, which plays a role in the regulation of calcium levels in the blood. Nearly 70 years elapsed between the initial observation that PTH could stimulate new bone formation in animals, and the eventual introduction of the hormone into clinical practice.

In 1929, researchers described some success in using extracts from the parathyroid glands in treating a patient with hypoparathyroidism (underactive parathyroid glands). Additional studies showed that PTH could stimulate the function of osteoblasts (bone forming cells) and increase the production of new bone in rodents.

Later, in 1964, researchers defined the protein structure of PTH. By the late 1990s, scientists were beginning to understand the specific cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying PTH’s effects on two types of bone cells, the bone-forming osteoblasts and osteoclasts (bone resorbing cells responsible for bone loss).

The promising basic research of the late 20th century invigorated interest in using part of the parathyroid hormone molecule (PTH 1-34) for the treatment of osteoporosis. The first formal human trial of PTH 1-34 as a treatment for osteoporosis was done in 1980. This trial and later studies confirmed that the treatment had potent bone building properties as well as the ability to decrease the risk of fractures in people with osteoporosis.

Based on these many years of research, a derivative of PTH (PTH 1-34) was first approved for treatment of patients with osteoporosis in 2002.

For more information on endocrine research, see our Clinical Trials and Research page.

Editors:
Alan Schneyer, PhD
Ellen Seely, MD

April 2008