Studies revealed that Stevia has been used throughout the world since ancient times for various purposes; for example, as a sweetener and a medicine. We conducted a systematic literature review to summarize and quantify the past and current evidence for Stevia. We searched relevant papers up to 2007 in various databases. As we know that the leaves of Stevia plants have functional and sensory properties superior to those of many other high-potency sweeteners, Stevia is likely to become a major source of high-potency sweetener for the growing natural food market in the future. Although Stevia can be helpful to anyone, there are certain groups who are more likely to benefit from its remarkable sweetening potential. These include diabetic patients, those interested in decreasing caloric intake, and children. Stevia is a small perennial shrub that has been used for centuries as a bio-sweetener and for other medicinal uses such as to lower blood sugar. Its white crystalline compound (stevioside) is the natural herbal sweetener with no calories and is over 100-300 times sweeter than table sugar.

Rationale: The pulmonary mononuclear phagocyte system is a critical host defense mechanism composed of macrophages, monocytes, monocyte-derived cells, and dendritic cells. However, our current characterization of these cells is limited because it is derived largely from animal studies and analysis of human mononuclear phagocytes from blood and small tissue resections around tumors.Objectives: Phenotypic and morphologic characterization of mononuclear phagocytes that potentially access inhaled antigens in human lungs.Methods: We acquired and analyzed pulmonary mononuclear phagocytes from fully intact nondiseased human lungs (including the major blood vessels and draining lymph nodes) obtained en bloc from 72 individual donors. Differential labeling of hematopoietic cells via intrabronchial and intravenous administration of antibodies within the same lobe was used to identify extravascular tissue-resident mononuclear phagocytes and exclude cells within the vascular lumen. Multiparameter flow cytometry was used to identify mononuclear phagocyte populations among cells labeled by each route of antibody delivery. Measurements and Main Results:We performed a phenotypic analysis of pulmonary mononuclear phagocytes isolated from whole nondiseased human lungs and lung-draining lymph nodes. Five pulmonary mononuclear phagocytes were observed, including macrophages, monocyte-derived cells, and dendritic cells that were phenotypically distinct from cell populations found in blood.Conclusions: Different mononuclear phagocytes, particularly dendritic cells, were labeled by intravascular and intrabronchial antibody delivery, countering the notion that tissue and blood mononuclear phagocytes are equivalent systems. Phenotypic descriptions of the mononuclear phagocytes in nondiseased lungs provide a precedent for comparative studies in diseased lungs and potential targets for therapeutics. Correspondence and requests for reprints should be addressed to Claudia V. Jakubzick, Ph.D., Department of Pediatrics and Immunology, National Jewish Health, 1400 Jackson Street, Denver, CO 80206. E-mail: jakubzickc@njhealth.org This article has an online supplement, which is accessible from this issue's table of contents at www.atsjournals.org The human respiratory tract has a branching structure that terminates in millions of alveoli, whose luminal surface covers an approximate area of 50 to 100 m 2 . In comparison to other barrier surfaces, such as the skin (2 m 2 ) and the gut (10 m 2 ), this surface area is massive, and therefore, comprises the body's largest interface with the ambient environment. Because of normal respiratory function, the average human exchanges 7,000 to 9,000 L of gas each day and inhales billions of particles, allergens, and microbes. Accordingly, the human lung constitutes a major site for the innate and adaptive immune responses. In this context, cells in the mononuclear phagocyte system (MPS), which consists of macrophages, monocytes, monocytederived cells, and dendritic cells (DCs), play critical roles. T...

• Of the 30 000 genes, there are ;0.1% genes whose expression is linked to the origin of the cell rather than the environment.• Marco was most conserved by embryonic origin and not altered by the environment, whereas C1qb and Plbd1 were most conserved by adult origin.Alveolar macrophages (AMs) reside on the luminal surfaces of the airways and alveoli where they maintain host defense and promote alveolar homeostasis by ingesting inhaled particulates and regulating inflammatory responses. Recent studies have demonstrated that AMs populate the lungs during embryogenesis and self-renew throughout life with minimal replacement by circulating monocytes, except under extreme conditions of depletion or radiation injury. Here we demonstrate that on a global scale, environment appears to dictate AM development and function. Indeed, transcriptome analysis of embryonic host-derived and postnatal donor-derived AMs coexisting within the same mouse demonstrated >98% correlation and overall functional analyses were similar. However, we also identified several genes whose expression was dictated by origin rather than environment. The most differentially expressed gene not altered by environment was Marco, a gene recently demonstrated to have enhancer activity in embryonic-derived but not postnatal-derived tissue macrophages. Overall, we show that under homeostatic conditions, the environment largely dictates the programming and function of AMs, whereas the expression of a small number of genes remains linked to the origin of the cell. (Blood. 2015;126(11):1357-1366 Introduction Alveolar macrophages (AMs) reside on the luminal surfaces of the airways and airspaces where they serve critical roles in host defense and alveolar homeostasis, ingesting particulates and microbes that are constantly encountered in the lungs. Importantly, under most circumstances the phagocytosis of inhaled foreign agents is silent, such that inflammatory responses are activated only under circumstances when host defenses become overwhelmed.1 Indeed, compared with macrophages from other sites, AMs are relatively ineffective at initiating immune responses.2,3 Furthermore, compared with other tissue macrophages, they display a unique repertoire of cell surface molecules and have a distinct transcriptome profile. [4][5][6] AMs are now known to derive primarily from fetal liver monocytes and self-renew throughout life with minimal replenishment from circulating monocytes. [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] This self-renewal is not only maintained under steady-state conditions, but also during acute and chronic inflammation.16 These concepts were illustrated in lung-protected bone marrow (BM) chimera studies in which lead shields were used to protect AMs during radiation. Eight weeks after BM transplantation, the lungs of these chimeras contained AMs of host origin, whereas circulating monocytes were donor-derived. 16 In these chimeric mice, we showed that during inflammation (lipopolysaccharide or influenza A infection), BM donor-derived monocytes were rapidly...

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Background:PhoP is global regulator of Mycobacterium tuberculosis physiology. However, the role of phosphorylation of PhoP remains unknown. Results: PhoP activates complex lipid biosynthesis only upon phosphorylation. Conclusion: PhoP regulates lipid biosynthesis by a phosphorylation-dependent mechanism to contribute to morphology of the bacilli. Significance: This study sheds light on the unexplored role of phosphorylation of PhoP in regulating biosynthesis of lipids unique to M. tuberculosis.