Elongation of the side chain of analogs of 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 prevents osteopenia in a rat model.

Five analogs of 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2D3] [1], 26,27-dimethyl-1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2(Me)2D3] [2], 26,27-dimethyl-1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2(Et)2D3] [3], 26,27-dipropyl-1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2(Pr)2D3] [4], 26,27-dimethyl-24,24-difluoro-1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [24F2-1,25(OH)2(Me)2D3], and [5] 24a-homo-24,24-difluoro-1 alpha,25- dihydroxyvitamin D3 [24aF2-homo-1,25(OH)2D3] were investigated to clarify the possibility that prevents osteopenia induced in rats by ovariectomy and sciatic neurotomy. The objective of our studies was to determine whether these analogs may be effective for treatment of subjects with osteoporosis. 1,25(OH)2(Me)2D3, 24F2-1,25(OH)2(Me)2D3, and 24aF2-homo-1,25(OH)2D3 prevented decreases in bone mineral density (BMD) of the femur, as measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA).

Differences in metabolism between 26,26,26,27,27,27-hexafluoro-1 alpha, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and 1 alpha, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 in cultured neonatal mouse calvaria.

We investigated the metabolism of 26,26,26,27,27,27-hexafluoro-1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (26,27-F6-1,25(OH)2D3, ST-630) and 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin (1,25(OH)2D3) in cultured neonatal mouse calvaria to elucidate why ST-630 is more potent than 1,25(OH)2D3 in stimulating bone resorption in organ culture. The metabolites were extracted with ethyl acetate or chloroform/methanol (1:1) from cultured calvaria or medium incubated with [3H]-ST-630 or [3H]-1,25(OH)2D3 for various periods, and separated by high performance liquid chromatography. [3H]-ST-630 in cultured calvaria was converted to [3H]-26,26,26,27,27,27-hexafluoro-1 alpha,23(S),25-trihydroxyvitamin D3(26,27-F6-1,23,25(OH)3D3,ST-232), which stimulated bone resorption equipotently as 1,25(OH)2D3.