Effects of natural products and nutraceuticals on steroid hormone-regulated gene expression

Background: There is an increasing trend in the use of complementary and al ternative therapies to treat or prevent hormonally dependent pathologies. M ethods determined whether several of these natural products and nutraceutic als, commonly taken For hormone-related effects, possess steroid hormone ac tivity. The agonist and antagonist estrogenic, androgenic, and progestation al activities of 20 natural products and nutraceuticals were assessed using an in vitro tissue culture indicator system. Two steroid-regulated protein s (pS2 and prostate-specific antigen [PSA]) were quantified, using ELISA-ty pe immunoassays, as markers of agonist and antagonist activity. Results: Fo ur of the products tested, two isoflavone preparations, Promensil(TM) and E stro-Logic(TM); chamomile, and rapeseed extracts, were found to have weak e strogenic agonist activity, with the latter two also demonstrating weak pro gestational activity. Several of the products tested exhibited antagonistic (blocking) activity, including antiestrogenic activity by Prostate-Ease, w ild yam root, and dong quai, and anti androgenic activity by dong quai, Pro mensil(TM), and rosehips. Conclusions: Several of these natural products de monstrate weak steroid hormone activity. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.