Daily intake of β-cryptoxanthin prevents bone loss by preferential disturbance of osteoclastic activation in ovariectomized mice

Although β-cryptoxanthin, a xanthophyll carotenoid, has been shown to exert an anabolic effect on bone calcification, little attention has been paid thus far to the precise mechanism of bone remodeling. Daily oral administration of β-cryptoxanthin significantly inhibited osteoclastic activation as well as reduction of bone volume in ovariectomized mice. In vitro studies revealed that β-cryptoxanthin inhibited differentiation and maturation of osteoclasts by repression of the nuclear factor-κB-dependent transcriptional pathway. Our results suggest that supplementation with β-cryptoxanthin would be beneficial for prophylaxis and for therapy of metabolic bone diseases associated with abnormal osteoclast activation.