Recently many efforts are concentrated on the regeneration potential of material used in traditional Korean medicine. Phlomidis Radix has been used for the treatment of blood stasis, bone fracture and osteoporosis in traditional Korean medicine.

The purpose of this study is to examine effects of dichloromethane fraction Phlomidis Radix on Bone Formation in Human Fetal Osteoblasts. Human fetal osteoblastic cell line(hFOB1 1.19 ; American Type Culture Collection, Manassas, VA) were used and cells were cultured containing DMEM and dichloromethane fraction Phlomidis Radix (100 ng/ml, 1 µg/ml, 10 µg/ml) at 34℃ with 5% CO₂ in 100% humidity. MTT was performed to examine the viability of the cell, and alkaline phosphatase activity was analyzed to examnine the mineralization. Also bone calcification nodules were evaluated.

The cellular activity of hFOB1 was increased in 100 ng/ml, 1 microgram/ml, 10 microgram/ml of dichloromethane fraction of Phlomidis Radix and especially significant increation was showed in 100 ng/ml of dichloromethane fraction of Phlomidis Radix at 6days (p<0.05).

ALP level of hFOB1 was significantly increased in 100 ng/ml, 1 µg/ml, 10 µg/ml of dichloromethane fraction of Phlomidis Radix and especially more increation was showed in 10 microgram/ml of dichloromethane fraction of Phlomidis Radix (p<0.05). Calcification nodules of hFOB1 significantly increased in 10 µg/ml of dichloromethane fraction of Phlomidis Radix at 21days of incubation (p<0.05).

These results indicate that dichloromethane fraction of Phlomidis Radix has excellent effects on mineralization of hFOB1.