The action of vitamin K against the formation of hard tissues and the structure-activity relationship

• Published in: Japanese Journal of Pharmacology Vol. 40; no. suppl; p. 262
• Main Authors: Yonaga, Takara, Yoshimura, Kuniyoshi, Uraya, Tsutomu, Fujino, Yukio, Izumisawa, Megumi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Japanese
• Published: The Japanese Pharmacological Society 1986
• ISSN: 0021-5198; 1347-3506
• DOI: 10.1016/S0021-5198(19)59532-4

The effects of vitamin K (VK) on the formation of the hard tissues were studied using the proximal tibia and alveolar bone (mesodermal origin) and the incisor (ectodermal as well as mesodermal origin) of male rats (four weeks old) along with lead acetate as a time marker. VK_1 , VK_2 and VK_3 were given subcutaneously at 0.25-1.0 mg/kg twice a day for nine days. The following results were obtained： 1. VK hardly affected the body weight of rats, but VK_1 and VK_2 increased the bone growth. The effect of VK was more apparently against the longitudial growth of the proximal tibia than against the appositional growth of the alveolar bone. 2. VK_1 and VK_2 also increased the longitudinal and appositional growths of the incisor, but the action was weaker than that against the bone growth. 3. The increasing effect of VK_1 and VK_2 on the growth of the hard tissues was weakened with the increase of repeated injections at the larger doses. 4. VK_3 inhibited the formation of all the hard tissues observed. This effect became apparent with the increase of the doses and repeated injections. It is suggested that VK-dependent calcium binding protein is the most important for the formation of the hard tissues of mesodermal origin and the effect of VK differs depending on the difference of the structure.