Use of a parathyroid hormone peptide analogs for the treatment of vaginal atrophy

1. A method of treating vaginal atrophy in a human patient comprising administering to the patient the peptide hPTH (1-34) (SEQ ID NO: 5), hPTHrP (1-34) (SEQ ID NO: 17), hPTH (7-34) (SEQ ID NO: 8), hPTHrP (7-34) (SEQ ID NO: 19), hPTH (7-31) (SEQ ID NO: 28), hPTH (5-34) (SEQ ID NO: 9), hPTH (5-36) (SEQ ID NO: 10), [Nle 8,18 , Tyr 34 ] bPTH (7-34) NH2 (SEQ ID NO: 14), [Tyr 34 ] bPTH (7-34) NH2 (SEQ ID NO: 15), hPTHrP (7-31) (SEQ ID NO: 29), hPTHrP (5-36) (SEQ ID NO: 20), or hPTHrP (5-34) (SEQ ID NO: 21) in a dosage sufficient to enhance vaginal epithelial cell growth, wherein the peptide is capable of inducing DNA synthesis or vaginal cell growth in vitro.

2. A method of treating vaginal atrophy in a human patient comprising administering to the patient the peptide hPTH (1-34) (SEQ ID NO: 5), hPTHrP (1-34) (SEQ ID NO: 17), hPTH (7-34) (SEQ ID NO: 8), hPTHrP (7-34) (SEQ ID NO: 19), hPTH (7-31) (SEQ ID NO: 28), hPTH (5-34) (SEQ ID NO: 9), hPTH (5-36) (SEQ ID NO: 10), [Nle 8,18 , Tyr 34 ] bPTH (7-34) NH2 (SEQ ID NO: 14), [Tyr 34 ] bPTH (7-34) NH2 (SEQ ID NO: 15), hPTHrP (7-31) (SEQ ID NO: 29), hPTHrP (5-36) (SEQ ID NO: 20), or hPTHrP (5-34) (SEQ ID NO: 21), wherein the peptide is capable of inducing DNA synthesis or vaginal cell growth in vivo.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2 , wherein said peptide is at least eight amino acids long.

4. The method of claim 1 or 2 , wherein said peptide is hPTH (7-31) (SEQ ID NO: 28), hPTH (5-34) (SEQ ID NO: 9), hPTH (5-36) SEQ ID NO: 10), [Nle 8,18 , Tyr 34 ] bPTH (7-34) NH2 (SEQ ID NO: 14), [Tyr 34 ] bPTH (7-34) NH2 (SEQ ID NO: 15), hPTHrP (7-31) (SEQ ID NO: 29), hPTHrP (5-36) (SEQ ID NO: 20), or hPTHrP (5-34) (SEQ ID NO: 21).

5. The method of claim 1 or 2 , wherein said peptide is a cyclic peptide.

6. The method of claim 1 or 2 , wherein said peptide is administered vulvovaginally, intravaginally, intracervically, subcutaneously, or orally.

7. The method of claim 1 or 2 , further comprising the step of topically administering zinc oxide cream to the vulva of said patient.

8. The method of claim 1 or 2 , wherein said peptide is combined with a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier substance.

9. The method of claim 1 or 2 , wherein said peptide is encapsulated within a liposome, which comprises at least two distinct lipids, a primary lipid and a secondary lipid, the primary lipid constituting the greatest proportion, by weight, of any single lipid material forming the bilayers of said vesicle, the primary lipid being selected from the group consisting of C 12 -C 18 fatty alcohols, C 12 -C 18 glycol monoesters, C 12 -C 18 glyceryl mono- and diesters, and mixtures thereof, and the primary lipid further having the property that it will form a lipid vesicle in the absence of the secondary lipid, and the secondary lipid being present in an amount sufficient to allow formation of the lipid vesicles, the secondary lipid being selected from the group consisting of quaternary dimethyldiacyl amines, polyoxyethylene acyl alcohols, polyglycerols, sorbitan fatty acid esters, fatty acids and their salts, and mixtures thereof.

10. The method of claim 1 or 2 , wherein said peptide is administered as a solution, a gel, a suspension, a cream, an ointment, a foam, a pessary, or a tablet.

11. The method of claim 1 or 2 , wherein said peptide is administered in combination with a zinc salt.

12. The method of claim 1 or 2 , wherein the peptide is administered in the form of a pharmaceutically acceptable salt.