Abstract: Abstract: Osteoporosis is a systemic metabolic chronic bone disease characterized by reduced bone mass, decreased bone quality and degraded bone microstructure. It is mainly caused by bone metabolism disorder, that is, the increased bone resorption and insufficient bone formation resulted from the excessive formation of osteoclasts. Natural small-molecule compounds derived from traditional Chinese herbs and other plants can be used as alternative medicine for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis due to their advantages such as rich sources, diverse structures and few adverse effects. This article outlines the research progress on plant-derived natural small molecule compounds against osteoporosis in recent years, with a view to providing new ideas for the development of drugs and the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis.

Key words: osteoporosis, osteoblasts, osteoclasts, herbal drugs, natural small molecule compounds, osteogenic differentiation