Editorial: Bone aging and osteoporosis: recent evidence focusing on plant-based natural products

Various active ingredients from plants, such as polyphenols, polysaccharides, and flavonoids, are considered potential sources of drugs for treating bone aging and osteoporosis (OP) and have been proven to have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-bone resorption effects; thus, these compounds alleviate bone aging and OP (1, 2). However, unfortunately, studies on many active ingredients from plants with therapeutic potential for OP are still in the laboratory stage rather than being applied in clinical practice. Therefore, we proposed to summarize the research on this Research Topic to promote further discovery and research on plant natural products, and to promote the clinical application of plant-derived natural products. A total of 13 studies were included in this review, and these studies mainly presented the research progress and development of single plant medicines, monomeric compositions, and Chinese patent medicines for the treatment of bone aging-related diseases. The types of articles on this topic were mainly reviews, which can help us better understand the widespread progress of plant-derived natural products in the treatment of bone aging. In addition, we propose that more attention should be given to clinical research and mechanistic explorations of natural plant products.