ReviewCurrent osteoporosis reports2026
Lithium and the Brain-Bone Axis: A Bridge between Osteoporosis and Alzheimer's Disease.
Review in Current osteoporosis reports, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
purpose of reviewWe evaluate the converging evidence positioning lithium as a systemic modulator of bone and brain health through shared molecular pathways. This review examines the molecular basis, preclinical data, and clinical observations suggesting that lithium-long established as first-line therapy for bipolar disorder-may simultaneously protect against osteoporosis and neurodegeneration as two clinical conditions increasingly recognized to share biological substrates. RECENT
findingsLithium inhibits glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β), stabilizes β-catenin, and activates Wnt signaling in neurons and osteoblasts, while also modulating calcium-inositol homeostasis and suppressing NF-κB-mediated inflammation. Large observational studies report lower dementia incidence and reduced fracture risk in long-term lithium users, together with increases in bone mineral density. Declining brain lithium concentrations in patients with Alzheimer's disease raise the hypothesis that lithium may act as an essential micronutrient rather than solely a pharmacological agent. Bidirectional brain-bone crosstalk involving osteocalcin signaling and sclerostin transport across the blood-brain barrier provides a mechanistic basis for these pleiotropic effects. Lithium offers a unique paradigm for understanding and potentially treating age-related decline in multiple organ systems at subclinical dosage and concentration. However, observational study limitations, optimal dose uncertainties, and toxicity related to long-term usage concerns necessitate rigorous randomized controlled trials before broader clinical recommendations can be made. Future research should focus on optimizing formulation and patient selection to realize lithium's dual protective potential for bone and brain while minimizing risk.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.