Figure 1.

Germ-free (GF) mice are protected against the loss of trabecular bone induced by sex steroid deficiency. Three-dimensional reconstructions of femoral bone by in vitro microcomputed tomography in conventionally raised (Conv. R) mice, GF mice, and colonized GF (Col. GF) mice following treatment with the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GN-RH) agonist leuprolide (Leu) or vehicle control for 10 weeks. The images show that GF mice are protected against the loss of trabecular bone induced by sex steroid deficiency. (From Gao et al. 2007; reproduced, with permission, from the Journal of Clinical Investigation © 2007.)