• Journal of Korean Medicine for Obesity Research
• /
• v.21 no.1
• /
• pp.10-21
• /
• 2021

Objectives: Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a progressive pathological condition characterized by excessive proliferation of the prostate. In this study, we evaluated the effect of Corni Fructus water extract (CF) on the promotion of prostate cell proliferation by dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Methods: The effect of CF on the proliferation of LNCaP prostate cells was evaluated, and DHT was treated to induce an in vitro BPH model. To study the mechanism of inhibition of cell proliferation and BPH by CF, changes in the expression of key factors related to cell cycle and BPH were investigated. We further investigated the effect on the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and nitric oxide (NO) to evaluate the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory efficacy of CF. Results: Inhibition of LNCaP cell proliferation by CF was associated with decreased expression of cyclin D1 and cyclin A and increased expression of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p21. CF also suppressed expression of BPH inducing factors such as 5α-reductase type 2 and androgen receptor (AR) as well as prostate specific antigen (PSA). Furthermore, CF significantly blocked DHT-induced LNCaP cell proliferation and effectively attenuated DHT-induced expression of BPH mediators and cyclins. In addition, CF inhibited DHT-induced oxidative and inflammatory reactions by inhibiting production of ROS and NO. Conclusion: Our results demonstrated that CF probably acted as 5α-reductase type 2 inhibitor, preventing the 5α-reductase type 2-AR signaling pathway, thereby reducing the conversion of testosterone to DHT and the expression of PSA, which is at least correlated with the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of CF.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.29 no.1
• /
• pp.112-117
• /
• 2019

Herbal medicines are widely used as therapeutic products in many countries. Corni fructus (CF), the dried ripe sarcocarp of Cornus officinalis Sieb. et Zucc (Cornaceae), has been used for thousands of years in traditional medicine and has been reported to be effective for the prevention and treatment of various diseases, such as kidney diseases and diabetes. Recent research on CF has documented a wide spectrum of therapeutic properties, which include anti-inflammatory, ant-oxidative, immunomodulatory, and anti-cancer effects. However, there is no information on its safety. Therefore, in this study, the toxicity of water extract of CF to ICR mice was investigated. The mice received a single dose of water extract of CF (1,000, 2,000, and 5,000 mg/kg of body weight) via the oral route. Mortality, clinical signs, body weight changes, gross findings, and weights of the principal organs after 14 d were then assessed. The results revealed no adverse effects of CF as determined by clinical signs, body weights, or organ weights and no gross pathological findings in any of the treatment groups. These results suggest that the 50% lethal dose and approximated lethal dose of CF extract is over 5,000 mg/kg. The findings provide scientific evidence for the safety of CFs.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• v.40 no.2
• /
• pp.149-155
• /
• 2011

The objective of this study was to evaluate the antioxidant and antigenotoxic activities of sansuyu fruit (Corni fructus, CF) at temperatures of $25^{\circ}C$, $50^{\circ}C$, and $90^{\circ}C$ using a water extraction method. Total phenolic content (TPC), DPPH radical-scavenging activity (RSA), and superoxide dismutase (SOD)-like activity, and ORAC (Oxygen radical absorbance capacity) values were determined. Also the antigenotoxicity of CF was determined by measuring inhibitory effects of $H_2O_2$ induced DNA damage in human leukocytes using the comet assay. The TPC in the CF extracts was 4.2, 4.6, and 5.5 g/100 g GAE in $25^{\circ}C$, $50^{\circ}C$, and $90^{\circ}C$, respectively. The DPPH RSA of the CF extracts increased in a dose-dependent manner over the range of $50\sim1000\;{\mu}g$/mL in all temperatures and the $SC_{50}$ of DPPH RSA of the CF extracts were not significantly different at different extraction temperatures. The $SC_{50}$ of SOD-like was the highest in CF extracted at $25^{\circ}C$ (1.1 mg/mL) followed by $90^{\circ}C$ (1.2 mg/mL) and $50^{\circ}C$ (1.3 mg/mL). The ORAC values of the CF extracts were not significantly different in low concentration ($10\;{\mu}M$/mL) and was in order of $25^{\circ}C$ ($5.7\;{\mu}M$ TE)< $90^{\circ}C$ ($6.2\;{\mu}M$ TE)< $50^{\circ}C$ ($8.5\;{\mu}M$ TE) in high concentration ($50\;{\mu}M$/mL). $200\;{\mu}M$ $H_2O_2$ induced DNA damages in human leukocytes were significantly reduced by the pretreatment with the CF extracts. These results suggest that sansuyu fruit (Corni fructus) can be used as a natural source for antioxidant activities and as antigenotoxic agents regardless of the water extraction temperature.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.31 no.10
• /
• pp.885-897
• /
• 2021

Schisandrae Fructus (SF) and Corni Fructus (CF) have been used for a long time for the prevention and treatment of various diseases. Although reports have highlighted the possibility of inhibiting the onset and progression of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), studies on related mechanisms are still lacking. In this study, we investigated the potential of SF and CF in improving BPH by using a dihydrotestosterone (DHT)-induced in vitro BPH model using LNCaP prostate carcinoma cells. According to our results, water and ethanol extracts of SF and CF significantly inhibited the proliferation of LNCaP cells by DHT treatment and markedly downregulated the expression of DHT-induced BPH biomarkers and growth factors. They also regulated the expression of apoptosis regulatory factors and significantly reduced DHT-mediated oxidative stress. In addition, the protective effect on major factors involved in the pathogenesis of BPH was more effective in the ethanol extract treatment group than in the water extract group. Furthermore, the improvement effect on BPH was higher in the 1:1 combined treatment group than in the ethanol extract alone treatment group of SF and CF, and 60% ethanol extracts showed a better effect than 40% ethanol extracts. Therefore, our findings demonstrate that SF and CF can protect against BPH by preventing the hyperproliferation of prostate cells through the inhibition of the androgen signaling pathway, which was correlated with their antioxidant activities. Therefore, SF and CF extracts may be useful in the clinical treatment of BPH, and the combination of these two extracts can be synergistic.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.28 no.12
• /
• pp.1507-1515
• /
• 2018

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is characterized by prostatic hypertrophy mainly in the elderly. Corni Fructus is reportedly effective in the prevention and treatment of various diseases, but its efficacy on BPH has not been previously studied. In the present study, we investigated whether or not a Corni Fructus water extract (CF) could prevent testosterone-induced prostatic hyperplasia in rats. To induce BPH, castrated rats were subcutaneously injected with testosterone propionate (TP). CF was administered daily by oral gavage, along with the TP injections, and finasteride, a selective inhibitor of $5{\alpha}$-reductase type 2, was used as a positive control. The results show that CF significantly reduces prostate weight and histopathologic changes while also decreasing levels of serum dihydrotestosterone, similar to the finasteride-treated group. CF also suppresses TP-induced $5{\alpha}$-reductase expression and concentration in prostate tissue and serum, respectively. Furthermore, CF markedly inhibited TP-induced expression of the androgen receptor (AR) and the steroid receptor coactivator 1, an AR coactivator, which was associated with a decrease in prostate-specific antigen levels in both serum and prostate tissue. In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that CF weakens BPH status by inactivation of $5{\alpha}$-reductase and AR.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
• /
• v.28 no.5
• /
• pp.53-60
• /
• 2013

Objectives : To prove the channel-tropism theory in herbology, we investigated the anti-diabetic effect of six herbal plants used for lower wasting-thirst in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Methods : Diabetes was induced in male Sprague-Dawley rats by consecutive injection of streptozotocin (30 mg/kg i.p.) for 5 days. The rats were divided into normal control, diabetic control, and diabetic treatment with Lycii Radicis Cortex (LRC, 300 mg/kg); Corni Fructus (CF, 300 mg/kg); Bombyx Batryticatus (BB, 50 mg/kg); Lycii Fructus (LF, 300 mg/kg); Phellodendri Cortex (PC, 300 mg/kg); Epimedii Herba (EH, 300 mg/kg); and glibenclimide (10 mg/kg) as a reference drug. Herbal extracts or reference drug were administered orally for 28 days. The changes of body weight, food intake and water intake, and serological markers such as blood glucose, serum total cholesterol, triglyceride (TG), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), and creatinine (Cr) were measured. Results : The decrease of body weight and the increase of food and water intake in STZ-induced diabetic rats was improved by the administration of CF and LF. Also, the enhancement of blood glucose and serum total cholesterol, TG, BUN and Cr in STZ-induced diabetic rats was significantly inhibited by the administration of CF, BB, LF and glibenclimide. On the other hand, EH strongly inhibited the increase of BUN and Cr in the sera of STZ-induced diabetic rats. Conclusions : These results suggest that among six herbal medicines used lower emaciation of emaciation-thirst disease, CF, BB, LF and EH show a characteristics including the channel-tropism theory.