Leptin effects on bone metabolism

Abstract

Scales from adult zebrafish, Danio rerio, are an established model for studying osteoblast and osteoclast activity. In this study, scales in a cell culture were used to determine if the hormone leptin has an effect on activity of these bone remodeling scales. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) activities of zebrafish scales were measured and compared with and without leptin treatment. There was no statistically significant difference between leptin treatments in terms of ALP and TRAP activity. Differences between TRAP values between days 1 and 2 did look promising although they were not statistically significant. This study could provide an insight into any effect that leptin may have on bone metabolism considering the differences in TRAP activity as previously mentioned. A viable scale assay model, however, was established which can contribute to the understanding of the molecular role of leptin in bone metabolism