BoneKEy-Osteovision | Perspective

Leptin and bone: A consensus emerging?

Mark W Hamrick

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DOI:10.1138/20070254

Abstract

The cytokine-like hormone leptin has emerged as a major factor linking food intake with bone metabolism. Leptin can regulate bone formation through both central (hypothalamic) and peripheral (direct) pathways, and leptin deficiency, in the form of either caloric restriction or a congenital absence of leptin, is associated with low bone mass. Leptin resistance does, however, increase with age in both humans and laboratory animals. The problem of leptin resistance suggests that the potential utility of leptin as a treatment for bone loss is limited to states of energy deprivation and leptin deficiency, such as exercise-induced hypothalamic amenorrhea, anorexia nervosa, and weight loss.

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