A comprehensive review on the stinging nettle effect and efficacy profiles. Part II: Urticae radix

Nettle root is recommended for complaints associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). We therefore conducted a comprehensive review of the literature to summarise the pharmacological and clinical effects of this plant material. Only a few components of the active principle have been identified and the mechanism of action is still unclear. It seems likely that sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), aromatase, epidermal growth factor and prostate steroid membrane receptors are involved in the anti-prostatic effect, but less likely that 5alpha-reductase or androgen receptors are involved. Extract and a polysaccharide fraction were shown to exert anti-inflammatory activity. A proprietary methanolic nettle root extract and particular fractions inhibited cell proliferation. Isolated lectins (UDA) were shown to be promising immunomodulatory agents, having also anti-viral and fungistatic effects. However, despite these in vitro studies it is unclear whether the in-vitro or animal data are a surrogate for clinical effects. The clinical evidence of effectiveness for nettle root in the treatment of BPH is based on many open studies. A small number of randomised controlled studies indicate that a proprietary methanolic extract is effective in improving BPH complaints. However, the significance and magnitude of the effect remains to be established in further confirmatory studies before nettle root treatment may be accepted in the guidelines for BPH treatment. The risk for adverse events during nettle root treatment is very low, as is its toxicity. Pre-clinical safety data remain to be completed.     

Untangling the intracellular signalling network in cancer--a strategy for data integration in acute myeloid leukaemia

Protein and gene networks centred on the regulatory tumour suppressor proteins may be of crucial importance both in carcinogenesis and in the response to chemotherapy. Tumour suppressor protein p53 integrates intracellular data in stress responses, receiving signals and translating these into differential gene expression. Interpretation of the data integrated on p53 may therefore reveal the response to therapy in cancer. Proteomics offers more specific data - closer to "the real action" - than the hitherto more frequently used gene expression profiling. Integrated data analysis may reveal pathways disrupted at several regulatory levels. Ultimately, integrated data analysis may also contribute to finding key underlying cancer genes. We here proposes a Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR)-based data integration strategy, which allows simultaneous analysis of proteomic data, gene expression data and classical clinical parameters. PLSR collapses multidimensional data into fewer relevant dimensions for data interpretation. PLSR can also aid identification of functionally important modules by also performing comparison to databases on known biological interactions. Further, PLSR allows meaningful visualization of complex datasets, aiding interpretation of the underlying biology. Extracting the true biological causal mechanisms from heterogeneous patient populations is the key to discovery of new therapeutic options in cancer.     

Phenology and field biology of black cutworm (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Ontario no-till corn

Black cutworm, Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel), is an occasional corn, Zea mays L., pest that is attracted to no-till fields. Understanding the phenology of black cutworm in Ontario no-till corn, particularly the time of arrival of adults in relation to the onset of crop damage and the stages of larvae that coincide with vulnerable corn seedling leaf stages, is important for their effective control. Pheromone and blacklight trap captures of moths first occurred in early April, whereas significant influxes did not occur until mid- to late April. Males and females were often captured simultaneously, in contrast to findings in Iowa and Illinois where males were captured in pheromone traps on average 3 wk ahead of females or males in blacklight traps. This may be a reflection of a more mature source population for the influxes into Ontario because first captures also were later than in the United States. Females arrived mated and corn seedling cutting occurred within 137 degree-days (DD) (base 10.4 degrees C) of first capture in Ontario corn. Cutworms were present in cornfields before planting, and the mean age of larvae increased along with corn leaf stage, suggesting that no new recruitment took place after planting. The apparent synchrony between corn and cutworm phenology in the northern areas of corn production seems more related to the availability and quality of food for young larvae relative to the development of the crop then the time of arrival of moths.     

Segmental structure of the Brassica napus genome based on comparative analysis with Arabidopsis thaliana

Over 1000 genetically linked RFLP loci in Brassica napus were mapped to homologous positions in the Arabidopsis genome on the basis of sequence similarity. Blocks of genetically linked loci in B. napus frequently corresponded to physically linked markers in Arabidopsis. This comparative analysis allowed the identification of a minimum of 21 conserved genomic units within the Arabidopsis genome, which can be duplicated and rearranged to generate the present-day B. napus genome. The conserved regions extended over lengths as great as 50 cM in the B. napus genetic map, equivalent to approximately 9 Mb of contiguous sequence in the Arabidopsis genome. There was also evidence for conservation of chromosome landmarks, particularly centromeric regions, between the two species. The observed segmental structure of the Brassica genome strongly suggests that the extant Brassica diploid species evolved from a hexaploid ancestor. The comparative map assists in exploiting the Arabidopsis genomic sequence for marker and candidate gene identification within the larger, intractable genomes of the Brassica polyploids.     

Circulation of type 1 vaccine-derived poliovirus in the Philippines in 2001

In 2001, highly evolved type 1 circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus (cVDPV) was isolated from three acute flaccid paralysis patients and one contact from three separate communities in the Philippines. Complete genomic sequencing of these four cVDPV isolates revealed that the capsid region was derived from the Sabin 1 vaccine strain but most of the noncapsid region was derived from an unidentified enterovirus unrelated to the oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) strains. The sequences of the cVDPV isolates were closely related to each other, and the isolates had a common recombination site. Most of the genetic and biological properties of the cVDPV isolates were indistinguishable from those of wild polioviruses. However, the most recently identified cVDPV isolate from a healthy contact retained the temperature sensitivity and partial attenuation phenotypes. The sequence relationships among the isolates and Sabin 1 suggested that cVDPV originated from an OPV dose given in 1998 to 1999 and that cVDPV circulated along a narrow chain of transmission. Type 1 cVDPV was last detected in the Philippines in September 2001, and population immunity to polio was raised by extensive OPV campaigns in late 2001 and early 2002.     

Human plasma membrane-derived vesicles halt proliferation and induce differentiation of THP-1 acute monocytic leukemia cells

Plasma membrane-derived vesicles (PMVs) are small intact vesicles released from the cell surface that play a role in intercellular communication. We have examined the role of PMVs in the terminal differentiation of monocytes. The myeloid-differentiating agents all-trans retinoic acid/PMA and histamine, the inflammatory mediator that inhibits promonocyte proliferation, induced an intracellular Ca(2+)-mediated PMV (as opposed to exosome) release from THP-1 promonocytes. These PMVs cause THP-1 cells to enter G(0)-G(1) cell cycle arrest and induce terminal monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation. Use of the TGF-β receptor antagonist SB-431542 and anti-TGF-β1 Ab showed that this was due to TGF-β1 carried on PMVs. Although TGF-β1 levels have been shown to increase in cell culture supernatants during macrophage differentiation and dendritic cell maturation, the presence of TGF-β1 in PMVs is yet to be reported. In this study, to our knowledge we show for the first time that TGF-β1 is carried on the surface of PMVs, and we confirm the presence within PMVs of certain leaderless proteins, with reported roles in myeloid cell differentiation. Our in vitro findings support a model in which TGF-β1-bearing PMVs, released from promonocytic leukemia cells (THP-1) or primary peripheral blood monocytes on exposure to sublytic complement or after treatment with a differentiation therapy agent, such as all-trans retinoic acid, significantly reduce proliferation of THP-1 cells. Such PMVs also induce the terminal differentiation of primary peripheral blood monocytes as well as THP-1 monocytes.