Russell T Turner

Oregon State University | OSU · School of Biological and Population Health Sciences

Mice are typically housed at room temperature (∼22 °C), which is well below their thermoneutral zone and results in cold stress. Chronic cold stress leads to increased adaptive thermogenesis and reductions in cancellous bone volume and bone marrow adipose tissue mass in long bones of growing mice. There is strong evidence that increased neuronal ac...

The effect of diet-induced obesity on bone in rodents is variable, with bone mass increases, decreases, and no impact reported. The goal of this study was to evaluate whether the composition of obesogenic diet may influence bone independent of its effect on body weight. As proof-of-principle, we used a mouse model to compare the skeletal effects of...

Estrogen signaling is critical for the development and maintenance of healthy bone, and age-related decline in estrogen levels contributes to the development of post-menopausal osteoporosis. Most bones consist of a dense cortical shell and an internal mesh-like network of trabecular bone that respond differently to internal and external cues such a...

Mice are typically housed at temperatures well below their thermoneutral zone. When individually housed at room temperature (~22 °C) mice experience cold stress which results in cancellous bone loss and has the potential to alter the skeletal response to treatment. It is not clear if there is a threshold temperature for cold stress-induced bone los...

Laboratory mice are typically housed at temperatures below the thermoneutral zone for the species, resulting in cold stress and premature cancellous bone loss. Furthermore, mice are more dependent upon non-shivering thermogenesis to maintain body temperature during spaceflight, suggesting that microgravity-induced bone loss may be due, in part, to...

Zinc (Zn) deficiency impairs bone growth. However, the precise skeletal effects of varying levels of Zn deficiency and response to subsequent Zn repletion on the growing skeleton are incompletely understood. To address this gap in knowledge, we investigated the effects of dietary Zn ((severe deficiency (< 0.5 mg Zn/kg diet) and short-term Zn replet...

Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) influences bone turnover. Transient decreases in IGF-I levels and/or bioavailability may contribute to the detrimental effects of alcohol on bone. The goals of this non-human primate study were to (1) evaluate the 20-hour response of bone turnover markers to ethanol consumption, and (2) assess how ethanol consum...

Bone marrow adipose tissue (BMAT) levels are higher in distal femur metaphysis of female mice housed at thermoneutral (32°C) than in mice housed at 22°C, as are abdominal white adipose tissue (WAT) mass, and serum leptin levels. We performed two experiments to explore the role of increased leptin in temperature-enhanced accrual of BMAT. First, we s...

As part of the risk management plan for human system risks at the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the NASA Human Systems Risk Board uses causal diagrams (in the form of directed, acyclic graphs, or DAGs) to communicate the complex web of events that leads from exposure to the spaceflight environment to performance and healt...

Objective: Mice are facultative daily heterotherms with a thermoneutral point of ~32°C and when housed at standard room temperature (~22°C) experience cold stress and premature cancellous bone loss. It is unclear whether housing mice at the maximum recommended temperature of 26°C or group housing affects bone. The objectives of this study were to...

Scope: We performed a dose-ranging study using young estrogen-depleted rats to determine whether dietary isoliquiritigenin (ILQ) alters bone metabolism and if the effects are associated with estrogen receptor signaling. Methods and results: Six-week-old rats (ovariectomized at 4 weeks of age) were fed diets containing 0, 100, 250 or 750 ppm ILQ...

Sixteen-week-old female C57BL/6J mice were sacrificed aboard the International Space Station after 37 days of flight (RR-1 mission) and frozen carcasses returned to Earth. RNA was isolated from interscapular brown adipose tissue (BAT) and gonadal white adipose tissue (WAT). Spaceflight resulted in differential expression of genes in BAT consistent...

Alcohol consumption is often reported to influence bone health in a dose-dependent manner where moderate alcohol intake is deemed beneficial and heavy drinking detrimental. However, this relationship may not be valid for individual alcohol consumers, as small quantities of alcohol can have detrimental skeletal effects and not all studies report cli...

Purpose Alcohol consumption suppressed bone turnover in male non-human primates; however, it is unclear the extent to which this effect depends upon biological variables. Using archived plasma samples, we investigated whether sex, age of onset of alcohol intake, and species influence the effects of graded increases in alcohol consumption on bone tu...

Development of optimal bone mass during early adulthood is determined by the balance between bone formation and resorption. The utility of minimally invasive biomarkers for monitoring bone turnover balance in maturing non-human primates has received limited attention. This study evaluated the biological variation of osteocalcin (a marker of bone fo...

Advanced age is the strongest risk factor for osteoporosis. The immunomodulator drug rapamycin extends lifespan in numerous experimental model organisms and is being investigated as a potential therapeutic to slow human aging, but little is known about the effects of rapamycin on bone. We evaluated the impact of rapamycin treatment on bone mass, ar...

Dieting is a common but often ineffective long-term strategy for preventing weight gain. Similar to humans, adult rats exhibit progressive weight gain. The adipokine leptin regulates appetite and energy expenditure but hyperleptinemia is associated with leptin resistance. Here, we compared the effects of increasing leptin levels in the hypothalamus...

Objectives Weight gain during middle age is associated with several chronic diseases. Dieting is a common but often ineffective long-term strategy for stabilizing body weight at optimal levels for health. Similar to humans, middle-aged rats exhibit progressive weight gain and are a useful model for evaluating strategies for controlling weight. The...

Mechanical loading of the skeleton during normal weight bearing plays an important role in bone accrual and turnover balance. We recently evaluated bone microarchitecture in the femoral head in 5.6-week-old male Sprague Dawley rats subjected to a 4-day spaceflight aboard STS-41. Compared to weight bearing ground controls, cancellous bone volume fra...

Chronic heavy alcohol use is often associated with reduced bone mineral density and altered bone turnover. However, the dose response effects of ethanol on bone turnover have not been established. This study examined the effects of graded increases of ethanol consumption on biochemical markers of bone turnover in young adult male cynomolgus macaque...

Milk consumption has long been associated with better bone development in children, contrary to sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB); however, stronger evidence are needed. Therefore, this study aimed to use a pig model for growing children to evaluate the effect of milk vs. SBB consumption on the developing skeleton. For this, we used 24 pre-pubertal p...

The gravitostat is purported to function as a leptin-independent, osteocyte-dependent mechanism for regulation of energy balance. If correct, reduced activation of gravitostat signaling caused by prolonged sitting may contribute to obesity. The gravitostat concept is supported by reduced body mass in rodents following surgical implantation of weigh...

Menopause is a natural physiological process in older women that is associated with reduced estrogen production and results in increased risk for obesity, diabetes, and osteoporosis. 17α-estradiol (17α-E2) treatment in males, but not females, reverses several metabolic conditions associated with advancing age, highlighting sexually dimorphic action...

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is accompanied by rapid loss of bone and increased risk of low impact fractures. Current pharmacological treatment approaches have proven to be relatively ineffective in preventing or treating bone loss after SCI. Dietary supplementation with dried plum (DP) has been shown to have dramatic effects on bone in various other d...

Objectives Isoliquiritigenin (ILQ) is a phenolic compound found in licorice and is a popular dietary supplement. ILQ exhibits model-specific antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, and estrogenic activities. Limited data suggest the potential of ILQ to prevent or treat osteoporosis. Therefore, this study evaluated the effects of short-duration...

Growing female mice housed at room temperature (22°C) weigh the same but differ in body composition compared to mice housed at thermoneutrality (32°C). Specifically, mice housed at room temperature have lower levels of white adipose tissue (WAT). Additionally, bone marrow adipose tissue (bMAT) and cancellous bone volume fraction in distal femur met...

Deletion of TGFβ inducible early gene‐1 (TIEG) in mice results in an osteopenic phenotype that exists only in female animals. Molecular analyses on female TIEG knockout (KO) mouse bones identified increased expression of sclerostin, an effect that was confirmed at the protein level in serum. Sclerostin antibody (Scl‐Ab) therapy has been shown to el...

Equol (EQ) is a prominent microbial metabolite of the soy isoflavone, daidzein, with estrogen-like properties. The major soy isoflavone, genistein (GEN), stimulated growth of estrogen-dependent breast cancer (EDBC) cells in vitro and tumor growth in vivo but EQ did not. To understand possible interactions of EQ and GEN on EDBC, EQ was used with GEN...

Mice are a commonly-used model to investigate aging-related bone loss but, in contrast to humans, mice exhibit cancellous bone loss prior to skeletal maturity. The mechanisms mediating premature bone loss are not well established. However, our previous work in female mice suggests housing temperature is a critical factor. Premature cancellous bone...

Background: Estrogen signaling is essential for the sexual dimorphism of the skeleton, is required for normal bone remodeling balance in adults, and may influence the skeletal response to alcohol. High levels of alcohol consumption lower bone mass in ovary-intact but not ovariectomized (ovx) rats. However, the extremely rapid rate of bone loss imm...

Background: Chronic heavy alcohol consumption is an established risk factor for bone fracture but comorbidities associated with alcohol intake may contribute to increased fracture rates in alcohol abusers. To address the specific effects of alcohol on bone, we used a non-human primate model and evaluated voluntary alcohol consumption on (1) global...

Based on body weight, morbidly obese leptin-deficient ob/ob mice have less bone than expected, suggesting that leptin plays a role in the skeletal response to weight bearing. To evaluate this possibility, we compared the skeletal response of wild type (WT) and ob/ob mice to hindlimb unloading (HU). Mice were individually housed at 32 °C (thermoneut...

Deep-frying is a popular form of food preparation used globally and throughout in the United States. Each time dietary oils are heated to deep-frying temperatures, they undergo chemical alterations that result in a new matrix of lipid structures. These lipid products include triglyceride dimers, polymers, oxidized triglycerides, and cyclic monomers...

Total-body irradiation (TBI) followed by transfer of bone marrow cells from donors is routinely performed in immunology research and can be used to manipulate differentiation and/or function of bone cells. However, exposure to high-dose radiation can result in irreversible osteopenia, and transfer of heterogeneous cell populations can complicate in...

Particles generated from wear of prosthesis joint bearing surfaces induce inflammation-mediated periprosthetic bone resorption (osteolysis). Morbidly obese leptin-deficient ob/ob mice are resistant to polyethylene particle-induced bone loss, suggesting that leptin, a hormone produced by adipocytes that circulates in concentrations proportional to t...

Focal bone resorption (osteolysis) induced by wear particles contributes to long-term orthopedic joint failure. However, the impact of focal osteolysis on remote skeletal sites has received less attention. The goal of this study was to determine the effects of polyethylene particles placed over calvaria on representative axial and appendicular skel...

Purpose of review: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) located in the bone marrow have the capacity to differentiate into multiple cell lineages, including osteoblast and adipocyte. Adipocyte density within marrow is inversely associated with bone mass during aging and in some pathological conditions, contributing to the prevailing view that marrow adip...

Xanthohumol (XN), a prenylated flavonoid from hops, improves dysfunctional glucose and lipid metabolism in animal models of metabolic syndrome (MetS). However, its metabolic transformation into the estrogenic metabolite, 8-prenylnaringenin (8-PN), poses a potential health concern for its use in humans. To address this concern, we evaluated two hydr...

Impaired resorption of cartilage matrix deposited during endochondral ossification is a defining feature of juvenile osteopetrosis. Growing, leptin-deficient ob/ob mice exhibit a mild form of osteopetrosis. However, the extent to which the disease is (1) self-limiting and (2) reversible by leptin treatment is unknown. We addressed the first questio...

Endoxifen, the primary active metabolite of tamoxifen, is currently being investigated as a novel endocrine therapy for the treatment of breast cancer. Tamoxifen is a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) that elicits potent anti-breast cancer effects. However, long-term use of tamoxifen also induces bone loss in pre-menopausal women and is...

X-ray microcomputed tomography was used to reveal putative trematode metacercariae (Platyhelminthes: Digenea) located in cysts positioned at the base of the femora in a 100 myr agamid lizard preserved in Myanmar amber. The cysts are characterized and compared with encysted metacercariae recovered from a similar location in an extant Anolis lizard....

Breast cancer metastasizes to bone in the majority of patients with advanced disease. We investigated the effects of inadequate dietary calcium (Ca) on bone turnover, tumor growth, and bone response to tumor in tibia inoculated with 4T1 mammary carcinoma cells. Nine-month-old female Balb/c mice were placed on an adequate Ca (5 g/kg diet, n = 30) or...

Representative CT images of proximal tibia metaphysis showing the residual needle insertion track (injection site) in a mouse fed adequate Ca diet and a mouse fed low Ca diet. Note the presence of bone spicules in the needle track of both treatment groups. (TIF)

Effects of Ca intake on cancellous and cortical bone architecture in contralateral (left; uninjected) proximal tibia metaphysis and distal tibia diaphysis, respectively in mice injected with 4T1 cells in right tibia and sacrificed on day 5, 10, and 21 post 4T1 cell injection. (PDF)

Effects of Ca intake and needle insertion on cancellous and cortical bone microarchitecture in tibia at 10 days post carrier injection. (PDF)

Leptin, critical in regulation of energy metabolism, is also important for normal bone growth, maturation and turnover. Compared to wild type (WT) mice, bone mass is lower in leptin-deficient ob/ob mice; osteopenia in growing ob/ob mice is due to decreased bone accrual, and is associated with reduced longitudinal bone growth, impaired cancellous bo...

High levels of alpha-tocopherol, the usual vitamin E supplement, are reported to decrease bone mass in rodents; however, the effects of other vitamin E forms on the skeleton are unknown. To test the hypothesis that high intakes of various vitamin E forms or the vitamin E metabolite, carboxyethyl hydroxy chromanol, were detrimental to bone status, S...

Osteolytic bone diseases, such as osteoporosis, are characterized by diminished bone quality and increased fracture risk. The therapeutic challenge remains to maintain bone homeostasis with a balance between osteoclast-mediated resorption and osteoblast-mediated formation. Osteoclasts are formed by the fusion of monocyte/macrophage-derived precurso...

Bone marrow adipose tissue (MAT) is negatively associated with bone mass. Since osteoblasts and adipocytes are derived from the same precursor cells, adipocyte differentiation may occur at the expense of osteoblast differentiation. We used MAT-deficient KitW/W−v (MAT-) mice to determine if absence of MAT reduced bone loss in hindlimb-unloaded (HU)...

Leptin, the protein product of the ob gene, is essential for normal bone growth, maturation, and turnover. Peripheral actions of leptin occur at lower serum levels of the hormone than central actions because entry of leptin into the central nervous system (CNS) is limited due to its saturable transport across the blood brain barrier (BBB). We perfo...

Introduction Phosphate binding with sevelamer can ameliorate detrimental histomorphometric changes of bone in chronic renal insufficiency (CRI). Here we explored the effects of sevelamer-HCl treatment on bone strength and structure in experimental CRI. Methods Forty-eight 8-week-old rats were assigned to surgical 5/6 nephrectomy (CRI) or renal dec...

Low bone mass is often associated with elevated bone marrow adiposity. Since osteoblasts and adipocytes are derived from the same mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) progenitor, adipocyte formation may increase at the expense of osteoblast formation. Leptin is an adipocyte-derived hormone known to regulate energy and bone metabolism. Leptin deficiency and...

Weight-dependent loading of the skeleton plays an important role in establishing and maintaining bone mass and strength. This review focuses on mechanical signaling induced by body weight as an essential mechanism for maintaining bone health. In addition, the skeletal effects of deviation from normal weight are discussed. The magnitude of mechanica...

Breast cancer (BC) is the leading cancer in women worldwide. Metastasis occurs in stage IV BC with bone and lung being common metastatic sites. Here we evaluate the effects of the aromatase inhibitor letrozole on BC micro-metastatic tumor growth in bone and lung metastasis in intact and ovariectomized (OVX) mice with murine estrogen receptor negati...

Room temperature housing (22 °C) results in premature cancellous bone loss in female mice. The bone loss was prevented by housing mice at thermoneutral temperature (32 °C). Thermogenesis differs markedly between mice and humans and mild cold stress induced by standard room temperature housing may introduce an unrecognized confounding variable into...

Nutrition is an important determinant of bone health and attainment of peak bone mass. Diets containing dried plum (DP) have been shown to increase bone volume and strength. These effects may be linked to the immune system and DP-specific polyphenols. To better understand these relationships we studied DP in skeletally mature (6-month-old) and grow...

There is often a reciprocal relationship between bone marrow adipocytes and osteoblasts, suggesting that marrow adipose tissue (MAT) antagonizes osteoblast differentiation. MAT is increased in rodents during spaceflight but a causal relationship between MAT and bone loss remains unclear. In the present study, we evaluated the effects of a 14-day sp...

Background: Alcohol is an important nonessential component of diet, but the overall impact of drinking on bone health, especially at moderate levels, is not well understood. Bone health is important because fractures greatly reduce quality of life and are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the elderly. Regular alcohol consumption is most...

This study investigated the effects of a 14-day spaceflight on bone mass, density and microarchitecture in weight bearing (femur and humerus) and non-weight bearing (2nd lumbar vertebra and calvarium) bones in the context of ovarian hormone insufficiency. 12-week-old Fisher 344 rats were ovariectomized 2 weeks before flight and randomized into one...

Scope: We studied the impact of dietary supplementation with licorice root components on diet-induced obesity, fat accumulation, and hepatic steatosis in ovariectomized C57BL/6 mice as a menopause model. Materials and methods: We evaluated the molecular and physiological effects of dietary licorice root administered to ovariectomized C57BL/6 mic...