The effects of a systemic single dose of zoledronic acid on post-implantation bone remodelling and inflammation in an ovariectomised rat model.

Bisphosphonates reverse the negative effects of ovariectomy on bone, but they have also been associated with adverse processes in human jawbone. The molecular events determining bone regeneration and implant integration in osteoporotic conditions, with and without bisphosphonate treatment, are unclear. In this study, ovariectomised rats, to which a single dose of saline (NaCl) or zoledronic acid (Zol) was administered, received titanium alloy implants in their tibiae and mandibles. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, gene expression analysis and histomorphometry were performed. The results show that ovariectomy, per se, upregulated the expression of genes denoting bone formation in the tibia, bone remodelling in the mandible and apoptosis in the tibia and mandible. Zoledronic acid administration resulted in lower levels of a remodelling marker in serum and downregulated gene expression for inflammation, bone formation, angiogenesis and apoptosis, mainly in the mandible, after 28 d of healing. Histomorphometry revealed improved bone-to-implant contact in the tibia, while the opposite was observed in the mandible. The present data show that a systemic single dose of zoledronic acid, in ovariectomised animals, results in site-specific differences in the regulation of genes involved in bone healing and regeneration in association with implant installation. These events occur in parallel with site-specific differences in the rate of osseointegration, indicating diverse tissue responses in the tibia and mandible after zoledronic acid treatment. The zoledronic acid effect on gene expression, during the late phase of healing in the mandible, suggests negative effects by the anti-resorptive agent on osseointegration at that particular site.