Effect of the Curcumin Supplementation on the Regional Bone Mineral Density of Femur and Tibial Bones in Young Rats Exposed to Lead Acetate

Recent studies have shown that lead causes oxidative stress in bones by inducing the generation of reactive oxygen species. In this study, the effects of 8-week curcumin supplementation on the regional bone mineral density of femur and tibial bones in rats exposed to lead acetate was investigated. Fifty days aged Wistar rats were randomly assigned to baseline, sham-operate, lead acetate and curcumin + lead (curcumin) groups. Lead and/or curcumin groups received 20 mg/kg lead acetate peritoneally for 8 weeks (3 days/week). In addition, the curcumin group received 30 mg/kg curcumin solution for 3 days-a-week for 8 weeks. The femur and tibial BMD were measured by Dual-Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry (DEXA) methods. Data was analyzed by one-way ANOVA test and SPSS 17. MDA and lead levels were significantly lower in the curcumin group compared with lead-exposed and baseline groups. In addition, BMD and TAC levels was significantly higher in the curcumin group compared with lead-treated and baseline groups. These results show that environmental exposure to lead may be a risk factor for skeletal diseases. Furthermore, the curcumin supplementation possibly has inhibitory effects on lead-induced loss of femur and tibial BMD.