Glucocorticoid-Induced Osteoporosis

Overview

Glucocorticoids are used to treat diseases caused by an overactive immune system and cancer. Glucocorticoid treatment has detrimental side-effects including the induction of secondary osteoporosis that leads to an increased risk of bone fracture.

Capabilities

Pharmatest offers a model of glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIO) where intact male mice are treated with prednisolone, a corticosteroid drug that is used widely in clinical practice. In mice, prednisolone treatment impairs bone formation and bone strength, mimicking GIO observed in human patients.

Specific standard and tailored study setups are available for the efficacy testing of new drug candidates, biosimilars and functional foods for treating GIO, and for testing side-effects of new glucocorticoids on bone.

Bone Analysis Services

Pharmatest offers a range of bone analysis services. The standard study setups in different disease models include different combinations of bone analysis methods that can also be used as stand-alone services, where clients send samples for Pharmatest to perform the selected measurements and provide the results. These bone analysis methods include:

• • Micro-computed tomography (µCT)
  • Peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT)
  • Radiographic imaging and image analysis
  • Full-service bone histomorphometry, including static and dynamic parameters
  • Processing of tissue samples for histological analysis, including tissue preparation and embedding to paraffin or plastic, and a variety of histological staining techniques
  • Bone ash weight analysis
  • Bone biomechanical testing, including cantilever bending, three-point bending and compression tests
  • Biochemical markers of bone turnover in serum, including procollagen I N-terminal propeptide (PINP), N-terminal mid-fragment of osteocalcin (OC), C-terminal cross-linked telopeptides of type I collagen (CTX-I) and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRACP 5b)
  • Gene expression analysis using microarrays (e. g. Affymetrix, Agilent, Illumina) and bioinformatics services
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Resources

Click on glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis models for more information.
Click on Pharmatest to contact the company directly.

Supplier Information
Supplier: Pharmatest Services Ltd
Address: Itäinen Pitkäkatu 4 C, 5th floor, 20520 Turku, Finland
Tel: +358 2 278 4700
Fax: +358 2 278 4710
Website: www.pharmatest.com