Ricerc@Sapienza

Prostatitis, a general term describing prostate inflammation, is a common disease that
could be sustained by bacterial or non-bacterial infectious agents. The efficacy of herbal extracts with
antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects for blunting the burden of inflammation and oxidative
stress, with possible improvements in clinical symptoms, is under investigation. Pollen extracts have
been previously reported as promising agents in managing clinical symptoms related to prostatitis.
The aim of the present work was to evaluate the protective effects of Graminex pollen (GraminexTM,
Deshler, OH, USA), a commercially available product based on standardized pollen extracts, in rat
prostate specimens, ex vivo. In this context, we studied the putative mechanism of action of
pollen on multiple inflammatory pathways, including the reduction of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2),
nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NFB), and malondialdehyde (MDA),
whose activities were significantly increased by inflammatory stimuli. We characterized by means
of chromatographic and colorimetric studies the composition of Graminex pollen to better correlate
the activity of pollen on immortalized prostate cells (PC3), and in rat prostate specimens challenged
with Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We found that Graminex pollen was able to reduce
radical oxygen species (ROS) production by PC3 cells and MDA, NFB mRNA, and PGE2 levels,
in rat prostate specimens. According to our experimental evidence, Graminex pollen appears to be a
promising natural product for the management of the inflammatory components in the prostate.