Abstract
Ovariectomized osteoporotic rats were divided into four groups: ordinary egg, vitamin D 2.5 μg fortified egg, vitamin D 10 μg fortified egg and a mixture of ordinary egg and authentic vitamin D. These samples were orally administered and vitamin D intakes of these groups were approximately 0.03, 0.19, 0.77 and 0.77 μg per day per rat. In comparison with the ordinary egg group, the vitamin D 10 μg fortified egg group was significantly higher in femur weight, femur length, tibia length, humerus length and ulna length. From histological photomicrographs of the rat's lumbar vertebrae, the average width of mineralized trabecular bone in the vitamin D 10 μg fortified egg group was larger than that in the ordinary egg group, and active osteoid formation was observed in the former group. Comparing bone parameters between the groups supplemented with the same amount of vitamin D either as egg or as authentic compound, they were significantly higher or slightly higher in the former than in the latter. These results indicated that sufficient amounts of vitamin D supplementation from egg were effective for bone growth even in ovariectomized rats.
