Effects of S-equol and natural S-equol supplement (SE5-OH) on the growth of MCF-7 in vitro and as tumors implanted into ovariectomized athymic mice.

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for treatment of menopausal symptoms is controversial because of reported breast cancer resulting from estrogen treatment and consequent estrogenic stimulation. S-equol, a natural metabolite of the soy isoflavone daidzein produced by intestinal bacteria, has been shown to ameliorate menopausal symptoms, with relatively low concomitant estrogenic receptor stimulation. Although synthesis of equol produces the racemate, the S-isomer may be produced in commercial amounts by bacterial fermentation of soy germ, during the production of the supplement SE5-OH.

Inhibitory NK receptor Ly49Q is expressed on subsets of dendritic cells in a cellular maturation- and cytokine stimulation-dependent manner.

Ly49Q is a member of the Ly49 family that is expressed on Gr-1+ cells but not on NK and NKT cells. Ly49Q appears to be involved in regulating cytoskeletal architectures through ITIM-mediated signaling. We provide evidence that dendritic cells (DCs) of certain maturational states expressed Ly49Q, and that IFN-alpha plays an important role in its regulation.

Ly49Q, a member of the Ly49 family that is selectively expressed on myeloid lineage cells and involved in regulation of cytoskeletal architecture.

Here, we identified and characterized a Ly49 family member, designated as Ly49Q. The Ly49q gene encodes a 273-aa protein with an immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibitory motif (ITIM) at the N terminus of its cytoplasmic domain. We show that the ITIM of Ly49Q can recruit SHP-2 and SHP-1 in a tyrosine phosphorylation-dependent manner.