Osteoporosis is a systemic skeletal disease caused by disrupted bone homeostasis. Black-bean-derived oligopeptides have shown promise as natural osteogenic candidates, yet their roles in mitigating osteoporosis based on gut microecology modulation remain poorly understood. In this study, black-bean-hydrolyzed peptides (Bacteroides, Bilophila, Bifidobacterium, and Lactobacillus, which were highly associated with the intestinal levels of glutamic acid and α-ketoglutaric acid (α-KG). Notably, α-KG exhibited the strongest positive correlation with bone mass in OVX mice. In vitro assays confirmed that α-KG stimulated bone formation by activating Wnt/β-catenin signaling. This study highlights the antiosteoporosis effects of black-bean oligopeptides via regulation of the gut microbiota and metabolites, providing novel mechanistic insights into peptide-based therapies for bone-related disorders.
Zhang et al. (Thu,) studied this question.