{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,28]],"date-time":"2026-05-28T00:08:00Z","timestamp":1779926880980,"version":"3.53.1"},"reference-count":49,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"21","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,10,29]],"date-time":"2024-10-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1730160000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100003718","name":"Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology, Republic of Korea","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["KSN2023331"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["KSN2023331"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100003718","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJMS"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Pulsatilla koreana Nakai (P. koreana) is a perennial herb traditionally used to treat malaria and fever. Although the pharmacological properties of P. koreana have been explored in various contexts, its effects on bone diseases, such as osteoporosis, remain poorly studied. In this study, we investigated the effects of water extracts of P. koreana (WEPK) on osteoclasts, which play a crucial role in bone remodeling, and an ovariectomized (OVX) mouse model, which mimics osteoporosis. Phytochemical profiling of WEPK revealed several compounds that regulate bone or fat metabolism. WEPK suppressed osteoclast differentiation by downregulating the expression of receptor activator of nuclear factor-\u03baB ligand (RANKL), a cytokine that induces osteoclastogenesis. Additionally, WEPK directly inhibited RANKL-induced differentiation of osteoclast precursors by downregulating nuclear factor of activated T cells 1 (NFATc1), the master transcription factor for osteoclastogenesis, by modulating its upstream regulators. In vivo, oral administration of WEPK suppressed bone loss, reduced weight gain, and mitigated fat accumulation in the liver and gonadal tissues of OVX mice. Given its positive impact on bone and fat accumulation under estrogen deficiency, WEPK may serve as a promising alternative therapy for postmenopausal osteoporosis, especially when accompanied by other metabolic disorders, such as obesity and fatty liver.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms252111616","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,10,29]],"date-time":"2024-10-29T08:42:09Z","timestamp":1730191329000},"page":"11616","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Water Extract of Pulsatilla koreana Nakai Inhibits Osteoclast Differentiation and Alleviates Ovariectomy-Induced Bone Loss"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"25","author":[{"given":"Dong Ryun","family":"Gu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"KM Convergence Research Division, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, Yuseong-daero 1672, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34054, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6483-2373","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hyun","family":"Yang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"KM Convergence Research Division, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, Yuseong-daero 1672, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34054, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Seong Cheol","family":"Kim","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"KM Convergence Research Division, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, Yuseong-daero 1672, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34054, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sung-Ju","family":"Lee","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"KM Convergence Research Division, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, Yuseong-daero 1672, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34054, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Hyunil","family":"Ha","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"KM Convergence Research Division, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, Yuseong-daero 1672, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34054, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,10,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"316","DOI":"10.1038\/nature01654","article-title":"The complexities of skeletal biology","volume":"423","author":"Karsenty","year":"2003","journal-title":"Nature"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"526","DOI":"10.1016\/0006-291X(91)92015-C","article-title":"Macrophage colony stimulating factor (M-CSF) is essential for osteoclast formation in vitro","volume":"177","author":"Hattersley","year":"1991","journal-title":"Biochem. 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