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. 2016 Jan 6;14(1):1559325815626685.
doi: 10.1177/1559325815626685. eCollection 2016 Jan-Mar.

Effects of Extreme Dilutions of Apis mellifica Preparations on Gene Expression Profiles of Human Cells

Elisabetta Bigagli  1 , Cristina Luceri  1 , Andrea Dei  2 , Simonetta Bernardini  3 , Piero Dolara  1
Affiliations

Effects of Extreme Dilutions of Apis mellifica Preparations on Gene Expression Profiles of Human Cells

Elisabetta Bigagli et al. Dose Response. .

Abstract

Gene expression analysis has been employed in the past to test the effects of high dilutions on cell systems. However, most of the previous studies were restricted to the investigation of few dilutions, making it difficult to explore underlying mechanisms of action. Using whole-genome transcriptomic analysis, we investigated the effects of a wide range of Apis mellifica dilutions on gene expression profiles of human cells. RWPE-1 cells, a nonneoplastic adult human epithelial prostate cell line, were exposed to Apis mellifica preparations (3C, 5C, 7C, 9C, 12C, 15C, and 30C) or to the reference solvent solutions for 24 hours; nonexposed cells were also checked for gene expression variations. Our results showed that even the most diluted solutions retained the ability to trigger significant variations in gene expression. Gene pathway analysis revealed consistent variations in gene expression induced by Apis mellifica when compared to nonexposed reference cells but not to reference solvent solutions. Since the effects of Apis Mellifica at extreme dilutions did not show dose-effect relationships, the biological or functional interpretation of these results remains uncertain.

Keywords: Apis mellifica; extreme dilutions; gene expression; homeopathy; microarrays.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Venn diagrams showing the number of genes significantly modulated (up- or downregulated) by treatments with Apis mellifica preparations varying from 3C to 30C. The circle in the upper left of each Venn diagram shows the genes significantly modulated comparing cells treated with different Apis mellifica preparations versus RWPE (a nonneoplastic adult human epithelial prostate cell line) cells treated with ethanol–water solvents alone (Apis vs ETOH). The circle on the upper right shows the number of genes modulated by the Apis mellifica preparations versus RWPE nontreated cells (Apis vs RWPE). The lower circle shows the number of genes modulated by the ethanol:water solvents versus RWPE nontreated cells (ETOH vs RWPE). The intersections between circles show the degree of genes signals overlapping among different treatments.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Left panel: Number of genes significantly up- or downregulated comparing RWPE (a nonneoplastic adult human epithelial prostate cell line) cells exposed to Apis mellifica preparations versus cells exposed to the reference ethanol:water solutions (Apis vs ethanol–water). Right panel: Number of genes significantly up-or downregulated comparing RWPE cells exposed to Apis mellifica preparations versus nonexposed reference cells (Apis vs not exposed RWPE).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

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