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Joan Stephenson, PhD

JAMA. 2006;295:1763.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 114 words of the full text and any section headings.

Japanese scientists report that the antibiotic reveromycin A appears to selectively kill osteoclasts, cells involved in resorbing bone tissue, a finding that may point to a new therapeutic approach for osteoporosis (Woo J et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2006;103:4729-4734).

Mature osteoclasts establish an acidic microenvironment in which they break down and resorb bone and mediate the excessive bone loss seen in osteoporosis and other conditions. The researchers found that reveromycin A blocked bone resorption by inducing apoptosis specifically in osteoclasts.

"This unique mechanism suggested that [reveromycin A] might represent a type of therapeutic agent for treating bone disorders associated with increased bone loss," the researchers said.