The effect of plant extracts on human macrophage activation

Members of the Caryophyllaceae Juss. family possess anabolic, adaptogenic, radioprotective, antitumoral and hemorheological properties and have been used in medical practice for the treatment of various inflammatory disorders. Macrophages are key immune cells that coordinate the inflammatory reaction. To identify the effects of Silene sendtneri and Silene roemeri on macrophage activation, primary human macrophages were cultured with extracts of these plants .We used microarrays to determine the global expression pattern induced by the extracts in macrophages. PBMC derived monocytes were stimulated either with IFNgamma or left unstimulated and cultured with extracts of Silene sendtneri or Silene roemeri. On the 6th day RNA was isolated and whole transcriptome was analyzed using Affymetrix microarrays