Effects of Davallia formosana Hayata Water and Alcohol Extracts on Osteoblastic MC3T3‐E1 Cells

The Taiwanese native fern Davallia formosana Hayata (DFH) is used to treat bone diseases in classical Chinese medicine. We analyzed MC3T3E1 osteoblasts treated with different concentrations of water and ethanol extracts (10, 25, and 50 [both], and 100 μg/mL [DFE only]) using cell viability, expression of osteoblast differentiation markers [bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP-2), collagen 1 (CoL-1), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and Runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx 2)], and mineralization. These were significantly increased by DFW or DFE after 24-h incubation compared with the untreated controls. Compared with other treatments, DFW 50 and DFE 100 μg/mL significantly increased MC3T3E1 cell survival. DFW 25 and 50 μg/mL increased bone BMP-2, CoL-1, ALP, and Runx2 protein expression, ALP activity, and mineralization more than DFE did. Repeated chromatographic separation of DFW yielded compound (−)-epicatechin-3-O-d-allipyranoside (ECAP), which was characterized using 1H and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. (−)-Epicatechin-3-O-d-allipyranoside (0.01 μg/mL) significantly increased cell survival (118.9%) and mineralization (218.7%) compared with that of the control treatment. We inferred that ECAP could mediate the main activity of DFW in bone formation, likely through BMP-2-induced Runx2 transcription, which increased bone cell differentiation factors ALP and CoL-1 and promoted mineralization. (−)-Epicatechin-3-O-d-allipyranoside could be an anti-osteoporotic agent. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.