Puerarin promotes the proliferation and differentiation of MC3T3-E1 cells via microRNA-106b by targeting receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand

Puerarin, an isoflavone-C-glucoside extracted from the root of (Willd.) Ohwi, is one of the most important crude herbs used in Chinese medicine for various medicinal purposes. Accumulating evidence has indicated that puerarin suppresses bone resorption and promotes bone formation. However, the molecular mechanism involved in puerarin-associated bone formation is unclear. The present study aimed to investigate the molecular mechanism of puerarin-induced osteoblast proliferation and differentiation. The study showed that puerarin treatment differentially affected cell proliferation in a time-dependent manner. Notably, at a concentration of 20 µM, puerarin significantly promoted cell proliferation in comparison with the control (P