Results of research done in South Africa show promise for the benefits of a new drug to combat osteoporosis – just in time for World Osteoporosis Day, Saturday, October 20th 2012. (See our related Exclusive today about this observance.)
Although the study was published as an abstract and should be considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal,a presentation at the annual meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research proved encouraging to the attendees.Inhibition of the cathepsin K pathway of bone metabolism with the medication, odanacatib, was associated with significant changes in biomarkers of bone metabolism, including decreases in bone resorption, while preserving bone formation.
A HealthDay article about the study quotes Tobias De Villiers, MBChB of Mediclinic Panorama in Western Cape, South Africa as saying, "Cathepsin K is the primary protease involved in the degradation of organic bone matrix. Odanacatib inhibits the proteolysis of bone matrix proteins . . . This study suggested that alendronate-experienced patients may gain bone mineral density beyond what was seen with alendronate [Fosamax] and therefore may gain by switching to odanacatib," De Villiers said.
