• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.633-640
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• 1995

As a result of screening the medicinal herbs which selectively control human intestinal microflora, water extract of Akebia quinata Decaisne was proved to have a strong inhibitory activity against the growth of Clostridium pefringens, a major harmful intestinal bacterium. The anti-bacte-rial activity was stable under the thermal treatment at 100$\circ$C for 120 min and in a range of pH 1 to 11. In addition, the water extract of Akebia quinata Decaisne showed the antibacterial activities against five different strains of Clostridia including C. perfringens. On the contrary, the extract did not inhibit the growths of Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis. The extract, however, suppressed markedly the growth of Bacteroides fragilis and Staphylococcus aureus in vitro. Alike in the mixed culture inoculated with human feces as starter, in vivo tests using rats showed that the extract tends to increase the numbers of Bifidobacteria and Lactobacilli in the intestinal microflora of rats, whereas those of Clostridia were attenuated.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.439-450
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• 2015

Akebia quinata fruit(AQF), as identified in the preceding paper, polyphenols and other phenolic components of saponin also has similar or higher levels. The purpose of this study is to analyze the effect of akebia quinata fruit extract, well-known for soothing, anti-oxidizing effects, on the improvement of the moisture, sebum, melanin, erythema content of facial skin. As a result of measuring DPPH radical scavenging activity to examine independent anti-oxidation of AQF, there was a slight scavenging activity. Compared to before the usage of cream, a group who used cream with akebia quinata fruit extract showed a very slight increase in the moisture content and slight decrease in the sebum, melanin, erythema on their faces after 4 weeks of tests, indicating that there was some statistically significant changes found. This study proves that the akebia quinata fruit(AQF) extract has a positive effect on the overall improvement of facial skin and it also implies that the akebia quinata fruit extract has high potential as an ingredient of cosmetic products.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.45 no.5
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• pp.619-627
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• 2013

We investigated the characteristics and biological activity of makgeolli supplemented with different levels (0%, 1%, 3%, 5%, and 7%) of Akebia quinata fruit during fermentation. Our results showed that supplementation with Akebia quinata fruit led to an increase in the acidity level, amino acid concentration, alcohol content, and total sugar level. Makgeolli supplemented with 7% Akebia quinata fruit showed the highest total sensory score. Supplementation with Akebia quinata fruit resulted in a significant increase in the antioxidant activity and nitric oxide inhibitory activity. Further, makgeolli supplemented with Akebia quinata fruit showed anticancer activity against DU145, HeLa, MCF-7, and U87cells, and significantly enhanced antibacterial activity against Shigella flexneri. Our results indicate that Akebia quinata fruit represents an effective natural additive for enhancing the biological activities of makgeolli.

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.84-87
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• 2006

Antioxidant activity of Akebia quinata Decne was evaluated. Water extract (0.5 g/50 mL) of flowers and leaves of A. quinata were prepared and total phenol contents and radical scavenging activity of the extracts was determined for antioxidant activity. The total phenol contents of extracts from A. quinata flowers (FAQ) and leaves (LAQ) were $30.05{\mu}M\;and\;20.23{\mu}M$, while the radical scavenging activity of FAQ and LAQ were 60.51 % and 52.97%, respectively. In addition, the effect of FAQ and LAQ extract on DNA damage induced by $H_2O_2$ in human lymphocytes was evaluated by comet assay. The FAQ and LAQ showed strong inhibitory effect against DNA damage induced by $200{\mu}M$ of $H_2O_2$. These results suggest that water extracts of A. quinata Decne flowers and leaves showed significant (p<0.05) antioxidant activity and protective effect against oxidative DNA damage.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.203-206
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• 2012

Treatment for heart failure is directed to reduce atrial volume overload by diuretic agents, to lessen ventricular pressure overload by vasodilatory agents and to increase myocardial performance through inotropic agents. Of those cardiac therapeutics, diuretic agents are the most important to control heart failure in dogs, although long-term use often causes detrimental side-effects such as acute renal failure and electrolyte abnormalities. Thus, this study was designed to find a new diuretic agent from medicinal herbs which has better diuretic effect and less unfavorable complications in dogs. In a preliminary study performed with 5 normal healthy dogs, the extract from Akebia quinata Decaisne showed mild to moderate diuretic effect (0.3-0.5 potency of furosemide 2 mg/kg) and minimal changes in serum chemistry and electrolyte. Although the study population was not large enough and study period was not sufficient enough, this study found a good alternative diuretic agent which can replace or reduce the use of furosemide in dogs with heart failure.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.7
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• pp.1956-1964
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• 2014

To provide the scientific corroboration of the traditional uses of Akebia quinata (Thunb.) Decne., a detailed analytical examination of A. quinata stems was carried out using a reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) method coupled to photodiode array detector (PDA) for the simultaneous determination of four phenolic substances; cuneataside D (1), 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)ethyl-O-${\beta}$-D-glucopyranoside (2), 3-caffeoylquinic acid (3) and calceolarioside B (4). Particular attention was focused on the main compound, 3-caffeoylquinic acid (3), which has a range of biological functions. In addition, 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)ethyl-O-${\beta}$-D-glucopyranoside (2) was considered as a discernible marker of A. quinata from its easy confuse plants. The contents of compounds 2 and 3 ranged from 0.72 to 2.68 mg/g and from 1.66 to 5.64 mg/g, respectively. The validation data indicated that this HPLC/PDA assay was used successfully to quantify the four phenolic compounds in A. quinata from different locations using relatively simple conditions and procedures. The pattern-recognition analysis data from 53 samples classified them into two groups, allowing discrimination between A. quinata and comparable herbs. The results suggest that the established HPLC/PDA method is suitable for quantitation and pattern-recognition analyses for a quality evaluation of this medicinal herb.

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.9-13
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• 2016

The present study was conducted to investigate the effects of beverages containing fermented Akebia quinata extracts on alcoholic hangover. For this study, 25 healthy young men were recruited. All participants consumed 100 mL of water (placebo), commercial hangover beverage A or B, fermented A. quinata leaf (AQL) or fruit (AQF) extract before alcohol consumption. After 1 h, all participants consumed a bottle of Soju, Korean distilled liquor (360 mL), containing 20% alcohol. Blood was collected at 0 h, 1 h, 3 h, and 5 h after alcohol consumption. The plasma alanine transaminase (ALT) activity was highest in the placebo group. Compared with the control group, the AQL and AQF groups showed decreased ALT activity at 5 h after alcohol consumption. Plasma ethanol concentration was increased after alcohol intake and peaked at 3 h after alcohol consumption. Compared with the control group, the A group showed a higher plasma ethanol concentration at 1 h (P<0.05). At 3 h after alcohol consumption, the AQF group showed the lowest mean plasma ethanol concentration compared to the other groups; however, there were no statistical differences. After 5 h of alcohol consumption, the AQL and AQF groups showed lower plasma ethanol concentrations compared with the B group. The sensory evaluation score for the fermented A. quinata fruit extract was lower than for the commercial hangover beverages. In conclusion, the present intervention study results suggest that fermented A. quinata extracts alleviate alcoholic hangover and reduce plasma ethanol concentrations.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.311-319
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• 2010

Four saponins (1~4) were isolated from Akebia quinata pericarp through bioassay-guided fractionation. Pericarps of A. quinata were extracted with ethanol and sequentially fractionated with dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, butanol and water. Compounds 1~4 from the butanol fraction were identified as 3-O-${\alpha}$-L-arabinopyranosyl hederagenin (${\delta}$-hederin), 3-O-${\alpha}$-L-rhamnopyranosyl (1${\rightarrow}$2) ${\alpha}$-L-arabinopyranoly oleanolic acid (${\beta}$-hederin), 3-O-${\beta}$-D-xylopyranosyl (1${\rightarrow}$3) ${\alpha}$-L-arabinopyranosyl hederagenin (saponin C), and 3-O ${\alpha}$-L-rhamnopyranosyl (1${\rightarrow}$2) ${\alpha}$-L-arabinopyranosyl hederagenin (${\alpha}$-hederin) based on the spectroscopic evidences, respectively. Oleanolic acid and hederagenin were identified as the corresponding sapogenins by acid-hydrolysis. These compounds exhibited strong cytotoxic activity in MTS [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxy-methoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H- tetrazolium, inner salt] assay on HepG2 cells. ${\beta}$-Hederin obviously attenuated the expression of bcl-2, an anti-apoptotic protein. All of the compounds also induced the activity of caspase-3, an apoptotic enzyme, while ${\alpha}$-hederin was the most potent activator of the enzyme. Our data demonstrate for the first time the apoptosis-inducing activity of A. quinata. These results suggest that A. quinata could be used as a potential source of natural cancer chemopreventive agents.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.67-75
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• 2024

Skin aging progresses due to external factors such as ultraviolet rays and infections. These factors cause skin fibroblasts to secrete proteolytic enzymes, matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). MMPs induce the degradation of collagen located in the extracellular matrix, directly influencing aging. The stems of Akebia quinata Decaisne have been reported to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. However, the anti-aging effect of Akebia quinata Decaisne stem ethanol extract (AQSEE) is not known. Therefore, we studied the TNF-α-induced MMP-1 inhibitory effect in human fibroblasts. When the cell viability of AQSEE was confirmed through MTT asaay, it showed no toxicity up to 400 ㎍/mL. The inhibition of MMP-1 mRNA and protein secretion was confirmed through RT-qPCR and ELISA, and results showed a significant decrease at concentrations of 100, 200, 400 ㎍/mL. We also confirmed by Western blotting that phosphorylation of MAPKs signaling pathway and transcription factors was reduced. As a result, phosphorylation of p38, c-Jun, p65 was significantly decreased at all concentrations. DPPH and ABTS assays were performed to confirm the radical scavenging ability of AQSEE, and the results showed a significant decrease at all concentrations. The results of this study confirmed the MMP-1 inhibitory effect and radical scavenging ability, which suggests that it can be used as an anti-aging substance.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2001.11a
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• pp.871-874
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• 2001

Antimicrobal effects of Akebia quinata DECAISNE were studied. Their Stems and Fruits were extracted with ethanol and water. The ethanol extracts, boiling ethanol extracts, boiling water extracts were not showed the inhibitory effects. But water extracts of stems and fruits were showed inhibitory effects on the 2species.(Bacillus subtills KCTC 1021, Bacillus cereus KCTC 1012)