• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.47 no.6
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• pp.714-725
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• 2023

Background: Our previous investigation indicated that the preparation of Panax ginseng Meyer (P. ginseng) inhibited melanogenesis. It comprised salicylic acid (SA), protocatechuic acid (PA), p-coumaric acid (p-CA), vanillic acid (VA), and caffeic acid (CA). In this investigation, the regulatory effects of P. ginseng phenolic acid monomers on melanin production were assessed. Methods: In vitro and in vivo impact of phenolic acid monomers were assessed. Results: SA, PA, p-CA and VA inhibited tyrosinase (TYR) to reduce melanin production, whereas CA had the opposite effects. SA, PA, p-CA and VA significantly downregulated the melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R), cycle AMP (cAMP), protein kinase A (PKA), cycle AMP-response element-binding protein (CREB), microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) pathway, reducing mRNA and protein levels of TYR, tyrosinase-related protein 1 (TYRP1), and TYRP2. Moreover, CA treatment enhanced the cAMP, PKA, and CREB pathways to promote MITF mRNA level and phosphorylation. It also alleviated MITF protein level in α-MSH-stimulated B16F10 cells, comparable to untreated B16F10, increasing the expression of phosphorylation glycogen synthase kinase 3β (p-GSK3β), β-catenin, p-ERK/ERK, and p-p38/p38. Furthermore, the GSK3β inhibitor promoted p-GSK3β and p-MITF expression, as observed in CA-treated cells. Moreover, p38 and ERK inhibitors inhibited CA-stimulated p-p38/p38, p-ERK/ERK, and p-MITF increase, which had negative binding energies with MC1R, as depicted by molecular docking. Conclusion: P. ginseng roots' phenolic acid monomers can safely inhibit melanin production by bidirectionally regulating melanin synthase transcription. Furthermore, they reduced MITF expression via MC1R/cAMP/PKA signaling pathway and enhanced MITF post-translational modification via Wnt/mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling pathway.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.198-208
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• 2006

Background : Ginseng has traditionally been used in oriental countries to recover vital energy from Qi deficiency, and has shown various biomedical effects in the scientific literature. Recent reports suggest that ginseng could regulate blood pressure (BP), but much controversy still remains. Therefore, we intended to assess the anti-hypertensive effect of several ginseng types frequently used in clinics. We also investigated the anti-hypertensive effect on Koreans and Chinese, and by the body type according to Sasang Constitution Medicine (SCM). Methods : The study subjects were recruited from mildly hypertensive patients who exhibited pre-hypertension(120/80 to 139/89 mmHg) and stage I hypertension (140/90 to 159/99 mmHg) in Korea and China. After assigning the subjects into a Korean, a Chinese, a red, and an American ginseng group by randomization, we prescribed ginseng at a dose of 4.5 g per day for 4 weeks. To assess the anti-hypertensive effect, we compared the mean of systolic and diastolic BP between before and after ginseng medication using a 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitor (24 hr ABPM. We also monitored adverse effect and laboratory findings to secure the subjects' safety. In addition, all of the subjects in Korea consulted a specialist of Sasang Constitution Medicine to identify their constitutional type. Results : There were 64 subjects treated with Korean ginseng, 58 treated with Chinese ginseng, 33 treated with red ginseng, and 64 treated with American ginseng. Korean, Chinese, and American ginseng all reduced subjects' BP; Korean and Chinese ginseng showed more effect. The secondary analysis on the subjects' nationality revealed that all of the ginseng types showed more significant anti-hypertensive effect in Chinese patients than in Koreans. The third analysis on the constitutional type of SCM showed there was no significant difference in the effectiveness and the safety of ginseng among the constitutional types. Conclusions : We suggest ginseng, especially Panax ginseng without any steaming-drying process, could be useful for mild hypertension. Further, ginseng is safe regardless of subjects' constitutional type or type of ginseng within a dosage of 4.5g per day.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.210-212
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• 1990

• Proceedings of the Ginseng society Conference
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• 1990.06a
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• pp.68-70
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• 1990

• Proceedings of the Ginseng society Conference
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• 2002.10a
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• pp.477-485
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• 2002

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.338-344
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• 2015

Background: Ginseng (the roots of Panax ginseng Meyer) is a well-known traditional Oriental medicine and is now widely used as a health food. It contains several types of ginsenosides, which are considered the major active medicinal components of ginseng. It has recently been reported that the qualitative and quantitative properties of ginsenosides found in ginseng may differ, depending on cultivation regions, ages, species, and so on. Therefore, it is necessary to study these variations with respect to cultivation ages and regions. Methods: In this study, 3-6-yr-old roots of P. ginseng were collected from three different cultivation regions. The contents of five ginsenosides (Rb1, Rd, Rc, Re, and Rgl) were measured by rapid resolution liquid chromatography coupled with quadruple-time-of-flight mass spectrometry. The Kruskal-Wallis Rank sum test and multiple t test were used for comparative analysis of the data to evaluate the dynamic changes in the accumulation of these ginsenosides affected by cultivation regions and ages. Results: The content and composition of ginsenosides varied significantly among specimens collected from different cultivation regions and having different cultivation ages. For all samples, the content of Rg1 and Re ginsenosides increases with age and this rate of increase is different for each sample. The contents of Rb1, Rc, and Rd varied with cultivation ages in samples from different cultivation regions; especially, Rb1 from a 6-yr-old root showed approximately twofold variation among the samples from three cultivation regions. Furthermore, the content of Rb1 highly correlated with that of Rd (r = 0.89 across all locations and ages). Conclusion: In our study, only the contents of ginsenosides Rg1 and Re were affected by the root age. Ginsenosides Rb1, Rc, and Rd varied widely with ages in samples from different cultivation regions.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.156-166
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• 2022

Background: Panax ginseng Meyer (P. ginseng), a herb distributed in Korea, China and Japan, exerts benefits on diverse inflammatory conditions. However, the underlying mechanism and active ingredients remains largely unclear. Herein, we aimed to explore the active ingredients of P. ginseng against inflammation and elucidate underlying mechanisms. Methods: Inflammation model was constructed by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in C57BL/6 mice and RAW264.7 macrophages. Molecular docking, molecular dynamics, surface plasmon resonance imaging (SPRi) and immunofluorescence were utilized to predict active component. Results: P. ginseng significantly inhibited LPS-induced lung injury and the expression of proinflammatory factors, including TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-1β. Additionally, P. ginseng blocked fluorescencelabeled LPS (LPS488) binding to the membranes of RAW264.7 macrophages, the phosphorylation of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs). Furthermore, molecular docking demonstrated that ginsenoside Ro (GRo) docked into the LPS binding site of toll like receptor 4 (TLR4)/myeloid differentiation factor 2 (MD2) complex. Molecular dynamic simulations showed that the MD2-GRo binding conformation was stable. SPRi demonstrated an excellent interaction between TLR4/ MD2 complex and GRo (K_D value of 1.16 × 10^-9 M). GRo significantly inhibited LPS488 binding to cell membranes. Further studies showed that GRo markedly suppressed LPS-triggered lung injury, the transcription and secretion levels of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-1β. Moreover, the phosphorylation of NF-κB and MAPKs as well as the p65 subunit nuclear translocation were inhibited by GRo dose-dependently. Conclusion: Our results suggest that GRo exerts anti-inflammation actions by direct inhibition of TLR4 signaling pathway.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.440-442
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• 2003

Panaxynol and panaxydol are major polyacetylene compounds in Ginseng and Wild Mountain Ginseng. Their contents in Korean wild mountain ginseng, Chinese mountain ginseng, and cultured ginseng were analysed by GC with FID. The content ratio of panaxynol to panaxydol was clearly different in various ginsengs. They were 1.81, 0.87, and 0.42 for Korean wild mountain ginseng, Chinese wild mountain ginseng, and cultured ginseng, respectively. The ratio difference could be used as a marker to identify various ginseng from different sources.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.339-346
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• 2017

Background: In this study, we investigated how to convert the Panax ginseng DNA sequence code and chemical fingerprints into a two-dimensional code. In order to improve the compression efficiency, GATC2Bytes and digital merger compression algorithms are proposed. Methods: HPLC chemical fingerprint data of 10 groups of P. ginseng from Northeast China and the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) sequence code as the DNA sequence code were ready for conversion. In order to convert such data into a two-dimensional code, the following six steps were performed: First, the chemical fingerprint characteristic data sets were obtained through the inflection filtering algorithm. Second, precompression processing of such data sets is undertaken. Third, precompression processing was undertaken with the P. ginseng DNA (ITS2) sequence codes. Fourth, the precompressed chemical fingerprint data and the DNA (ITS2) sequence code were combined in accordance with the set data format. Such combined data can be compressed by Zlib, an open source data compression algorithm. Finally, the compressed data generated a two-dimensional code called a quick response code (QR code). Results: Through the abovementioned converting process, it can be found that the number of bytes needed for storing P. ginseng chemical fingerprints and its DNA (ITS2) sequence code can be greatly reduced. After GTCA2Bytes algorithm processing, the ITS2 compression rate reaches 75% and the chemical fingerprint compression rate exceeds 99.65% via filtration and digital merger compression algorithm processing. Therefore, the overall compression ratio even exceeds 99.36%. The capacity of the formed QR code is around 0.5k, which can easily and successfully be read and identified by any smartphone. Conclusion: P. ginseng chemical fingerprints and its DNA (ITS2) sequence code can form a QR code after data processing, and therefore the QR code can be a perfect carrier of the authenticity and quality of P. ginseng information. This study provides a theoretical basis for the development of a quality traceability system of traditional Chinese medicine based on a two-dimensional code.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.506-518
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• 2020

Background: Red-skin root of Asian ginseng (Panax ginseng) significantly reduces the quality and limits the production of ginseng in China. The disease has long been thought to be a noninfectious physiological disease, except one report that proved it was an infectious disease. However, the causal agents have not been successfully determined. In the present study, we were to reveal the pathogens that cause red-skin disease. Methods: Ginseng roots with red-skin root symptoms were collected from commercial fields in Northeast China. Fungi were isolated from the lesion and identified based on morphological characters along with multilocus sequence analyses on internal transcription spacer, β-tubulin (tub2), histone H3 (his3), and translation elongation factor 1α (tef-1α). Pathogens were confirmed by inoculating the isolates in ginseng roots. Results: A total of 230 isolates were obtained from 209 disease samples. These isolates were classified into 12 species, including Dactylonectria sp., D. hordeicola, Fusarium acuminatum, F. avenaceum, F. solani, F. torulosum, Ilyonectria mors-panacis, I. robusta, Rhexocercosporidium panacis, and three novel species I. changbaiensis, I. communis, and I. qitaiheensis. Among them, I. communis, I. robusta, and F. solani had the highest isolation frequencies, being 36.1%, 20.9%, and 23.9%, respectively. All these species isolated were pathogenic to ginseng roots and caused red-skin root disease under appropriate condition. Conclusion: Fungal complex is the causal agent of red-skin root in P. ginseng.