Glycosides of herbal medicines, such as glycyrrhizin, ginsenosides, kalopanaxsaponins, rutin and ponicirin, were studied regarding their metabolic fates and pharmacological actions in relation to intestinal bacteria using germ-free, gnotobiotic and conventional animals. When glycyrrhizin (GL) was orally administered, $18{\beta}-glycyrrhetinic\;acid\;(GA)$, not GL, was detected in plasma and intestinal contents of gnotobiotic and conventional rats. However, GA could not be detected in germ-free rats. When GL was incubated with human intestinal bacteria, it was directly metabolized to GA (>95%) or via $18{\beta}-glycyrrhetinic\;acid-3-{\beta}-D-glucuronide$(>5%). Orally administered GL was effective in gnotobiotic and conventional rats for liver injury induced by carbon tetrachloride, but was not effective in germ-free rats. When ginseng saponins were orally administered to human beings, compound K in the plasma was detected, but the other protopanxadiol saponins were not detected. The compound K was active for tumor metastasis and allergy. When kalopanaxsaponins were incubated with human intestinal microflora, they were metabolized to kalopanaxsaponin A, kalopanaxsaponin I and hederagenin. These metabolites were active for rheumatoid arthritis and diabetic mellitus while the other kalopanxsaponins were not. When flavonoid glycosides were orally administered to animals, aglycones and/or phenolic acids were detected in the urine. The metabolic pathways proceeded by intestinal bacteria rather than by liver or blood enzymes. These metabolites, aglycones and phenolic acids, showed antitumor, antiinflammatory and antiplatelet aggregation activities. These findings suggest that glycosides of herbal medicines are prodrugs.

The effects of Eurycoma longifolia Jack on masculine copulatory behaviour were studied in the middle aged male Sprague-Dawley rats, 9 months old and retired breeders after dosing them with 500 mg/kg twice daily for 10 days prior to test. The test lasted for 30 minutes after a 20 minute adaptation period, was carried out on the 11th day during the dark phase of the light-dark cycle (2000-0700 hours) and in subdued light, using a modified copulation cage but with the presence of a piece of mirror of appropriate size to facilitate observation. Results showed that the mean values of EL-1, EL-2 and EL-3 of the control middle aged male rats were 103.20 sec, 91.21 sec and 80.00 sec but were significantly (p<0.05) increased to 118.40-120.20 sec, 101.24-171.28 sec and 100.42-110.21 sec respectively in the methanol-chloroform, methanol-butanol-water and methanol-butanol treated middle aged male rats. However, further results also showed that PEI-1 and PEI-2 of the control middle aged male rats were 182.30 sec and 257.2 sec but were significantly (p<0.05) decreased to 100.42-121.31 sec and 40.21-132.31 sec respectively in the methanol-chloroform-butanol-water and methanol-butanol treated middle aged male rats. In conclusion, this study showed that although E. longifolia Jack continued to enhance the sexual activity of the middle aged male rats by extending the duration of coitus and decreasing the refractory period between the different series of copulation, but to a smaller degree as compared to sexually active, adult male rats (Ang and Sim, 1997).

Antioxidative properties of fifteen anthraquinone derivatives, including eleven atural anthraquinones isolated from the roots of Morinda elliptica and four from synthetic origin were evaluated using thin layer chromatography (TLC), ferric thiocyanate (FTC) and thiobarbituric acid (TBA) methods. Five of the compounds, nordamnacanthal, damnacanthal, 2-formyl-1-hydroxyanthraquinone, morindone and alizarin showed higher antioxidative activity than standard natural antioxidant, ${\alpha}-tocopherol$, on the FTC assay. Morindone and alizarin showed the strongest antioxidant activity. The results from the bioassay using TBA method correlated well with the results of the FTC method.

The cultured mycelia of fungus Ganoderma lucidum were investigated for the inhibitory effect on the growth of s.c. transplanted Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) in BDF-1 mice by intraperitoneal (i.p.) administration. The cultured mycelia showed antitumor activity with T/C values of 89.6 and 50.3 % at doses of 100 and 500 mg/kg, respectively, compared to adriamycin, which was used a positive control, with T/C value of 54.6 % at 2 mg/kg.

Youngia koidzumiana is an endemic plant growing in Mt. Chiri. In our ongoing research for endemic species in Korea, we investigated the chemical constituents from the MeOH extract of Y. koidzumiana whole plants. The MeOH extract was partitioned with hexane, ethyl acetate and BuOH, successively. Four known compounds were isolated from ethyl acetate fraction by repeated column chromatography. Their structures were elucidated by the physicochemical and spectral data as germanicol acetate (1), oleanolic acid (2), brachynereolide (3) and ixerin Y (4).

Five coumarins and a pyrimidine were isolated from the roots of Angelica gigas. Their structures were elucidated as bergapten (1), decursinol angelate (2), decursin (3), nodakenetin (4), uracil (5) and nodakenin (6) by spectral analysis. Among them, bergapten (1) and uracil (5) were isolated for the first time from this plant part.

Two lupane-type triterpenes, lupenone (1) and lupeol (2), a phytosterol, ${\beta}-sitosterol$ (3), two ursane-type triterpenes, $3{\beta}-acetoxy$ ursolic acid (4) and ursolic acid (5), a lignan, (-)-lyoniresinol $3a-O-{\beta}-D-xylopyranoside$ (6), and two flavanol glycosides, $catechin-7-O-{\beta}-D-xylopyranoside$ (7) and $catechin-7-O-{\beta}-D-apiofuranoside$ (8) were isolated from the stem bark of Sorbus commixta (Rosaceae). Their chemical structures were identified by physicochemical and spectroscopic methods.

The in vitro anticoagulant and fibrinolytic activities of crude extracts from insects were evaluated in order to find effective therapeutic drugs for the treatment of myocardial and cerebral thrombosis. We prepared three types of extracts (water, methanol and ethylacetate) from 28 insects for use as raw materials for the activity assays. The fibrinolytic activity was tested using the fibrin plate method and the activated partial thromboplastin time and thrombin time were measured for blood clotting activity. With regards to the fibrinolytic system, water extracts of six kinds of insects displayed a remarkable level of activity with a plasmin-like action. The water extracts of [Catharsius molossus, Eupolyphaga sinensis, Huechys sanguinea, Mantidis $o\ddot{o}theca$, Mimela splendens, and Polistes mandarinus (Vespae Nidus)] exhibited the activity. On the other hand, the methanol extracts did not display any fibrinolytic activity. In terms of the coagulation system, an aqueous extract of silkworm Tongchunghacho (Paecilomyces japonica), Oxya japonica japonica and Buthus martensi (Scorpion) increased the clotting time significantly longer (181 times) than the control. These results suggest that crude drugs from insects are useful sources for the development of new drugs for use in treatments involving blood coagulation and fibrinolysis.

As apart of our continuing search for antistroke agents from the herbal medicinal resources, we examined in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo the possibility of Sunghyangjunggisan and its ingradients as a novel antithrombotic agent. In vitro ADP- and collagen-induced rat platelet aggregations were potently inhibited by Arisaematis Rhizoma, Cinnamomi Cortex and Zingiberis Rhizoma in a dose-dependent manner, but not by Sunghyangjunggisan. However, Sunghyangjunggisan significantly inhibited ex vivo rat platelet aggregation. Arisaematis Rhizoma, Atractylodis Rhizoma Alba, and Pinelliae Rhizoma also significantly inhibited ex vivo rat platelet aggregation. Sunghyangjunggisan, Alpiniae Fructus and Zingiberis Rhizoma showed significant protection from death due to pulmonary thrombosis in mice. Therefore, Sunghyangjunggisan can express the antithrombotic action, when it is orally administered.