OBJECTIVETo optimize the culture condition of adventitious roots of Panax ginseng.

METHODThe adventitious roots were obtained through tissue culture by manipulation of inoculum, various sucrose concentrations and salt strength. The contents of ginsenosides Re, Rb1 and Rg1 were determined by HPLC while the contents of polysaccharides were determined by ultraviolet spectrophotometry.

RESULTThe multiplication of adventitious roots reached the peak when the inoculum was 20 g x L(-1). The effects of sucrose concentration and salt strength on adventitious roots were observed. The contents of polysaccharides were higher when the medium contained more sucrose. 40 g x L(-1) sucrose was favorable for roots growth and biosynthesis of Re, while 30 g x L(-1) was favorable for the biosynthesis of Rb1 and Rg1. 3/4MS medium was benefit for the growth of adventitious roots and the biosynthesis of ginsenosides. The contents of polysaccharides were decreased with the increase of salt strength.

CONCLUSIONThe results showed that inoculum, various sucrose concentrations and salt strength have significant influences on adventitious roots growth, secondary metabolite and polysaccharide synthesis in P. ginseng.

Culture Media ; pharmacology ; Panax ; drug effects ; growth & development ; metabolism ; Plant Roots ; drug effects ; growth & development ; metabolism

Ginseng, the root of Panax ginseng C. A. Mayer, has long been used clinically in China to treat various diseases. Multiple effects of ginseng, such as antitumor, antiinflammatory, antiallergic, antioxidative, antidiabetic and antihypertensive have been confirmed by modern medicine. Recently, the clinical utilization of ginseng to treat heart diseases has increased dramatically. The roles of ginseng in protecting heart are foci for research in modern medical science and have been partially demonstrated, and the mechanisms of protection against coronary artery disease, cardiac hypertrophy, heart failure, cardiac energy metabolism, cardiac contractility, and arrhythmia are being uncovered progressively. However, more studies are needed to elucidate the complex mechanisms by which ginseng protects heart. All such studies will provide evidence of ginseng's clinical application, international promotion, and new drug development.
Animals ; Cardiotonic Agents ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Energy Metabolism ; drug effects ; Heart ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Myocardial Contraction ; drug effects ; Panax ; chemistry

In recent decades, scientists in Asian and Western countries have been paying great attention to ginseng research. Today, more than 200 ginsenosides and non-saponin constituents have been isolated and identified. Ginsenosides show biological activities only after being deglycosylated by intestinal bacteria. Aglycone protopanaxadiol and protopanaxatriol show the highest bioactivities. According to literature, the noticeable action of ginseng is that of delaying aging and especially increasing the nootropic effect, and it was found for the first time that Rg1 could increase hippocampal neurogenesis in vitro and in vivo under physiological and pathological circumstances. This is one of primary mechanisms underlying many of its pharmacological actions on the central nervous system. Rg1 was further shown to improve learning and memory in normal rats and mice. The nootropic signaling pathway has also been carried out in normal rats, and the Rg1-induced signaling pathway is similar to the memory formation that occurs in mammals, suggesting that Rg1 may have a potential effect in increasing intellectual capacity in normal people. Comparisons of chemical structures and pharmacologic functions between Panax ginseng and Panax quiquefolium were carried out by many scientists. The conclusion is that each has its own characteristics. There is no superiority or inferiority to the other.
Animals ; Cognition ; drug effects ; Ginsenosides ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Learning ; drug effects ; Memory ; drug effects ; Mice ; Neovascularization, Physiologic ; Neurogenesis ; Neuronal Plasticity ; drug effects ; Panax ; chemistry ; Rats ; Signal Transduction ; drug effects

The physiological response and bioaccumulation of 2-year-old Panax notoginseng to cadmium stress was investigated under a hydroponic experiment with different cadmium concentrations (0, 2.5, 5, 10 μmol · L(-1)). Result showed that low concentration (2.5 μmol · L(-1)) of cadmium could stimulate the activities of SOD, POD, APX in P. notoginseng, while high concentration (10 μmol · L(-1)) treatment made activities of antioxidant enzyme descended obviously. But, no matter how high the concentration of cadmium was, the activities of CAT were inhibited. The Pn, Tr, Gs in P. notoginseng decreased gradually with the increase of cadmium concentration, however Ci showed a trend from rise to decline. The enrichment coefficients of different parts in P. notoginseng ranked in the order of hair root > root > rhizome > leaf > stem, and all enrichment coefficients decreased with the increase of concentration of cadmium treatments; while the cadmium content in different parts of P. notoginseng and the transport coefficients rose. To sum up, cadmium could affect antioxidant enzyme system and photosynthetic system of P. notoginseng; P. notoginseng had the ability of cadmium enrichment, so we should plant it in suitable place reduce for reducing the absorption of cadmium; and choose medicinal parts properly to lessen cadmium intake.
Cadmium ; pharmacokinetics ; toxicity ; Hydroponics ; Panax notoginseng ; drug effects ; growth & development ; metabolism ; Photosynthesis ; drug effects ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism

Studies Generally, it is believed that the ancient 'Chinese jinseng' did exist due to the fact that it is clearly recorded in the Chinese historical and medicine-related sources. Although it is hard to deny that such 'ginseng' did exist in ancient China, the re-examination of its true nature is also necessary. In other words, certain refutation can be made against the claim that ancient 'Chinese jinseng' was in fact 'Panax ginseng C. A. Mey', since the Chinese jinseng accounts do not tell that it is such. For example, when looking into its shape based on descriptions, the 'Chinese jinseng' has black seed hairy stem, and violet flower, 'Panax ginseng C. A. Mey', on the other hand, has opal seed, no-hair stem, and light-green flower. In terms of cultivation centre, most of mainland China is unsuitable for jinseng production with the exception of the Shangdang area of Shanxi province, which solely had the reputation of being the production centre of ancient 'Chinese jinseng'. However, when looking into the Chinese sources for jinseng-producing areas they show that Hepei and Liaoning province and Jiangnan (south of the Yangtze river) areas also have had some jinseng-related history. Regardless of such instance, these regions did not cultivate 'Panax ginseng C. A. Mey'. As shown above, ancient 'Chinese jinseng' was far from being identical, in respect to its shape or production areas, to 'Panax ginseng C. A. Mey'. Hence, this study came to the conclusion that there is indeed very high skepticism about whether the true nature of 'jinseng' in ancient China was in fact 'Panax ginseng C. A. Mey'. On the contrary, there is higher possibility that the ancient 'Chinese jinseng' is totally different plant from 'Panax ginseng C. A. Mey', which is actually Codonopsis pilosula. When examining the shape and production areas of Codonopsis pilosula, it is closely matched with many parts of ancient 'Chinese jinseng' texts. In short, it is presumed that the 'Chinese jinseng' did indeed exist in ancient China but it was Codonopsis pilosula instead of 'Panax ginseng C. A. Mey'.
China ; English Abstract ; History of Medicine, Ancient ; History of Medicine, Early Modern ; History of Medicine, Modern ; Panax/*drug effects

Water extract of dried ginseng, which is known as a histamine liberator and induces degranulation and disruption of mesenteric mast cells, is thought to contain many different chemical factors. The essential component, a saponin extract of dried ginseng, was obtained and administered to albino rats. Even minute amounts (l mg in 0.0l cc of normal saline solution) when locally injected into the mesentery of albino rats caused degranulation of mesenteric mast cells. Degranulation of mesenteric mast cells followed the intraperitoneal injection of a crude water extract, of an alcohol extract of dried ginseng, and a direct injection of both extracts into the connective tissue of mesentery. This degranulation is believed to be a saponin fraction of ginseng in the ginseng extracts.
Animals ; Mast Cells/*drug effects ; *Panax ; *Plants, Medicinal ; Rats ; Saponins/*pharmacology

Animals ; Diestrus ; drug effects ; Female ; Hyperprolactinemia ; physiopathology ; Panax ; Prolactin ; blood ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Saponins ; pharmacology

As a traditional Chinese medicine in China, ginseng has a wide range of medicinal and health value. At present, the nutritional value of ginseng as a medicinal food has been a hotspot in studies. Intestinal flora plays an important role in the organism, which has been confirmed by many researchers. In order to find out the effect of long-term intake of ginseng extracts on the gut microbiota structure of rats, MiSeq sequencing platform was applied in macro gene sequencing of cecal contents in the long-term use of ginseng extracts modelin rats. According to the findings, after long-term administration with ginseng extracts, probiotics such as Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, Allobaculum and Clostridium, in the intestinal flora of rats were significantly increased, suggesting that long-term intake of ginseng extracts could facilitate the growth of probiotics. Meanwhile, some pathogenic bacteria, such as Butyricimonas, Parabacteroides, Alistipes, Helicobacter, were significantly down-regulated, indicating that long-term intake of ginseng extracts may have a positive effect in inhibiting the colonization of pathogenic bacteria. In conclusion, this study provided an important basis for the research on the effect of long-term use of ginseng extracts on the intestinal flora of rats.
Animals ; Bacteria ; classification ; China ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome ; drug effects ; Panax ; chemistry ; Plant Extracts ; pharmacology ; Rats

The ginseng family, including Panax ginseng (Asian ginseng), Panax quinquefolius (American ginseng), and Panax notoginseng (notoginseng), is commonly used herbal medicine. White ginseng is prepared by air-drying after harvest, while red ginseng is prepared by a steaming or heating process. The anticancer activity of red ginseng is significantly increased, due to the production of active anticancer ginsenosides during the steaming treatment, compared with that of white ginseng. Thus far, anticancer studies have been mostly focused on Asian ginseng. In this article, we review the research progress made in the anticancer activities of red Asian ginseng, red American ginseng and red notoginseng. The major anticancer mechanisms of red ginseng compounds include cell cycle arrest, induction of apoptosis/paraptosis, and inhibition of angiogenesis. The structure-function relationship analysis has revealed that the protopanaxadiol group ginsenosides have more potent effects than the protopanaxatriol group. Sugar molecules in ginsenosides inversely impact the antiproliferative potential of these compounds. In addition, ginsenoside stereoselectivity and double bond position also influence the anticancer activity. Future studies should focus on characterizing active red ginseng derivatives as potential anticancer drugs.
Angiogenesis Inhibitors ; pharmacology ; Animals ; Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic ; pharmacology ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Ginsenosides ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Neoplasms ; drug therapy ; prevention & control ; Panax ; chemistry ; Panax notoginseng ; chemistry ; Phytotherapy ; Structure-Activity Relationship

We investigated the effects of the oral administration of Korean red ginseng (KRG) on morphologic change and function of liver in dogs. Fifteen adult mongrel dogs (n=15) were divided into three groups: a control group (40% hepatectomy, untreated), a 250 group (40% hepatectomy, 250 mg/kg of KRG, PO), and a 500 group (40% hepatectomy, 500 mg/kg of KRG, PO). The liver regeneration, histologic findings, CBC (WBC, RBC, PCV, and PLT), and liver function tests (AST, ALT, GGT, ALP, LDH, and T-bil) were examined during experiment. The liver regeneration rates were higher in treated groups than in the control group. But, there were no significant differences. All hematological values were within normal ranges except leukocyte counts for 3 days postoperatively. The levels of AST and ALT in the treated groups were significantly decreased compared to that in the control group (p<0.05). The numbers of degenerative cells and area of connective tissue were significantly decreased in the liver of the dog with KRG administration (p<0.01). On the basis of these results, we could conclude that KRG accelerate the liver regeneration and ameliorate the liver injury after hepatectomy in dogs.
Animals ; Blood/drug effects ; Dogs ; Female ; Hepatectomy/*veterinary ; Liver/*drug effects/*surgery ; Liver Regeneration/*drug effects ; Male ; *Panax ; Plant Extracts/*pharmacology ; Plant Roots/chemistry