Endocrine activity of plant-derived compounds: an evolutionary perspective

Abstract

Although plants have long been known to have important pharmacological effects in humans, the mechanism by which plant-derived compounds act in humans is still being elucidated. Two important pathways for the biological actions of plant-derived compounds involved binding either to hormone receptors or to enzymes that metabolize hormones. What are the origins of this interaction between plant-derived compounds and animals? And what insights can we gain from investigating this question? Some answers come from recent sequence analyses, revealing that 17 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, which regulates estrogen and androgen levels in humans, and 15-hydroxyprostaglandin dehydrogenase, which regulates prostaglandin E2 and F2 alpha levels in humans, have a common ancestor with proteins in rhizobia that are important in forming nitrogen-fixing nodules in legume roots, and 3 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, which regulates progestin and androgen levels in humans, has a common ancestor with enzymes important in the synthesis of anthocyanins. This evolutionary kinship, when combined with the structural similarities between flavonoids, licorice-derived compounds, and steroid hormones, provides another perspective on the hormone-like activity of flavonoids and other plant-derived compounds in humans: some of the hormone-like activity of plant-derived compounds is due to binding to steroid and prostaglandin dehydrogenases.