title: Biomechanical performance of diaphyseal shafts and bone tissue of femurs from protein-restricted rats.
abstract: The aim of this study was to define the biomechanical repercussion of a severe protein restriction on the shaft of long bones and on cortical bone tissue. Femurs from 9 rats fed a protein-free diet from the 30th to the 50th day of age showed a great reduction of bending strength and stiffness with respect to 9 controls. These alterations correlated with severe impairment in the amount and/or the architectural arrangement of bone material (volume, wall/lumen ratio, sectional inertia) and also with reduction of Ca content and modulus of elasticity of bone tissue. No changes were observed, however, in bone elastic stress. The impairment in stiffness derived from reductions in both bone mass and modulus of elasticity led to an increment in energy absorption by bone and bone tissue which in turn induced a high incidence of comminuted fractures. The data provide a biomechanical basis for the interpretation of clinical features of nutritional osteopenia in long bones.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Estudios de Metabolismo Fosfocálcico (CEMFOC), Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Rosario, Sante Fe, Argentina.
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Ferretti
authors.forename: R D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Tessaro
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Delgado
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Bozzini
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Alippi
authors.forename: A C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Barceló
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism; D004548:Elasticity; D005260:Female; D005269:Femur / Q000503:physiopathology; D006132:Growth Plate / Q000473:pathology; D011488:Protein Deficiency / Q000503:physiopathology*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains
chemical_list: D002118:Calcium