Effect of halogenmethylenebisphosphonates on bone cells in culture and on bone resorption in vivo

Summary Dihalogenmethylenebisphosphonates increase alkaline phosphatase activity and fatty acid oxidation in calvaria cells in culture (Cl₂MBP>Br₂MBPF₂MBP). The monohalogen C1MBP and the non-halogenated analogues are less active on phosphatase and inactive on or inhibitory towards fatty acid oxidation. The three dihalogenbisphosphonates and C1MBP inhibit bone resorption in vivo, Cl₂MBP most strongly.Acknowledgments. We thank Miss M.-L. Aebersold, Miss J. Portenier, Mrs I. Tschudi and Mrs Ch. Marti for their skilled technical assistance. This work has been supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (grant 3.937.82), by the Procter & Gamble Company, Cincinnati, USA, by the Istituto Gentili S.p.A., Pisa, Italy, and by the Ausbildungs- und Förderungsfonds der Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Osteosynthese (AO), Chur, Switzerland.