• CELLMED
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.1.1-1.6
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• 2020

Since times immemorial, people have been dependant on plants for the various nutritional and pharamacological properties. Folk and traditional medicine recognizes thousands of plant species having miraculous benefits. Fig (Ficus carica Linn.) has been part of folk-lore since centuries. Ficus carica Linn. (Moraceae) is a huge deciduous tree, with more than 800 species. Different parts of Ficus carica like bark, root, leaves, fruit and latex have their own valuable importance and are frequently used for the treatment of various illnesses. Fruit of Ficus carica is commonly called as fig (anjeer) has various medicinal properties used in Unani, Ayurvedic and Chinese traditional system of medicines. Fig fruit is mostly used in gastro intestinal and respiratory disorders. In Unani medicine, fig is used as a diuretic, mild laxative and expectorant. Phytochemical studies on the leaves and fruits of the plant have shown that they are rich in Phenolics, Flavonoids, Vitamin C, Alkaloids, Saponins, Coumarins, tannins, organic acids, and volatile compounds due to which it is having great antioxidant property. Most interesting therapeutic effects include hypoglycemic, hepatoprotective, anticancer, antimicrobial and hypolipidemic activities.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.112-118
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• 2005

Fig(Ficus carica L.) which belongs to Moraceae family has been used as digestion promoter, cure for ulcerative inflammation and eruption in Korea. Figs have very short preservation period and can be kept only 1 week even in the refrigeration system. The possibility of wine-making from Korean figs was tested by analyzing the fermentation characteristics, proximate analysis and free sugar contents of wine made of slices with 20% sugar addition. Ethanol fermentation of the figs by Saccharomyces cerevisiae was done rapidly. The ethanol contents, pH, total acidity and sugar content were 12.1%, 3.91, 0.42% and 9.9 °Brix, respectively. The results from the sensory evaluation were as follows. The wine made from the sliced figs were better than that from fig juices in their sensory scores. The wine made with frozen figs was not different from that made with fresh ones. To improve the quality of wine, the addition of dried leaf powder in the concentration of 100 ppm were tried and found it was superior to the one made without leaf.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.405-413
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• 2010

Fig (Ficus carica L.) belongs to the mulberry tree (Moraceae) which is one of the oldest fruits in the world. It has been used as a digestion promoter and a cure for ulcerative inflammation and eruption in Korea. The present study investigated the antimicrobial activity of methanol (MeOH) extract of fig leaves against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolated in clinic. The MeOH extract (MICs, 2.5 to 20 mg/mL; MBCs, 5 to 20 mg/mL) was demonstrated as antibacterial activity in isolates MRSA 1-20. The administration of the MeOH extract in combination with oxacillin or ampicillin induced a reduction of ${\geq}$4-8-fold in all tested bacteria, which was considered to be synergistic based on a FICI of ${\leq}$0.375-0.5. Furthermore, time-kill study was found that a combination of MeOH extract with oxacillin or ampicillin produced a more rapid decrease in the concentration of bacteria CFU/mL than MeOH extract alone. The results suggest that fig leaves could be employed as a natural antibacterial agent in MRSA infection care products.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.799-806
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• 2012

This experiment was conducted to establish the optimum conditions for high $CO_2$ gas treatment in combination with a proper gas-permeable packaging film to maintain the quality of fig fruit (Ficus carica L). Among the fig fruits with different high $CO_2$ treatments, the quality change was most effectively controlled during storage in the 70%-$CO_2$-treated fig fruit. Harvested fig fruit was packaged using microperforated oriented polypropylene (MP) film to maintain the optimum gas concentrations in the headspace of packaging for the modified-atmosphere system. MP film had an oxygen transmission rate of about $10,295cm^3/m^2$/day/atm at $25^{\circ}C$. The weight loss, firmness, soluble-solid content (SSC), acidity (pH), skin color (Hunter L, a, b), and decay ratio of the fig fruits were monitored during storage at 5 and $25^{\circ}C$. The results of this study showed that the OPP film, OPP film + 70% $CO_2$, and MP film+70% $CO_2$ were highly effective in reducing the loss rate, firmness and decay occurrence rate of fig fruits that were packaged with them during storage. In the case of using treatments with packages of OPP film and OPP film+70% $CO_2$, however, adverse effects like package bursting or physiological injury of the fig may occur due to the gas pressure or long exposure to $CO_2$. Therefore, the results indicated that MP film containing 70% $CO_2$ can be used as an effective treatment to extend the freshness of fig fruits for storage at a proper low temperature.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.66
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• pp.204-212
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• 2023

Whitening is inhibitory activity of the melanin synthesis of melanocytes. Recently, whitening materials have been developed on natural materials because of its side effects on skin. Figs (Ficus Carica L.) is a fruit belonging to the Moraceae family and whitening activity was reported in focusing on the fig's stem and leaf components, but whitening activity of the figs fruit was not known. Thus, in this study, we tried to observe its anti-melanogenesis as well as antioxidant and anti-inflammation. The radical scavenging activity of figs fruits extract (FFE) was observed as the level of 34.52±1.98%/60.71±1.26% compared to the control in the its maximum concentration in the DPPH/ABTS assay. Cytotoxicity of FFE was observed at 10% concentration by CCK8 assay, so the maximum concentration was set at 5% and applied to all experiments. FFE concentration dependently decreased NO production associated with inducible nitric oxide synthase, cyclooxygenase-2, interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α gene expression, these strongly suggesting anti-inflammatory activity. In melanin contents assay, FFE significantly down-regulated melanin production in α-MSH-stimulated B16F10 cell as well as tyrosinase inhibition in vitro. In addition, FFE decreased the Microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) mRNA expression about 94.34% compared to the α-MSH treatment group in RT-PCR. Finally, FFE significantly reduced the MITF, cAMP response element-binding protein and tyrosinase protein expression in the α-MSH stimulated B16F10 cell. Through these results, we found that FFE can not only directly inhibit tyrosinase enzyme activity but also suppress melanogenesis through regulation of MITF gene expression in α-MSH signal transduction.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.66
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• pp.416-423
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• 2023

Figs has known to have antioxidant, whitening, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial effects in their leaves, roots, stems, latex, and fruits. In order to develop cosmetic materials based on natural products, we have studied on the skin activity of the ficin in latex as well as the whitening function of the fruit extract with 70% ethanol, and used it as a raw material for released cosmetic product. However, there is little research on the demand for the development of new eutectic solvent extraction methods and its ability to control skin inflammation and psoriasis regulation. Thus, in this study, we evaluated the effectiveness of fig fruit extracts and fractions using eutectic solvent extraction for skin inflammation control and psoriasis. First, fig fruits were extracted under optimal eutectic solvent conditions and fractionated with n-hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, and butanol. First, the antioxidant activity and inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) production were confirmed in mouse macrophage RAW264.7 cells. In addition, as a result of observing the mRNA expression through RT-PCR, pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α, IL1α, and IL-1β were suppressed significantly in the hexane, dichloromethane, and ethyl acetate fractions. In addition, it was confirmed in TNF-α stimulated HaCaT keratinocyte model. Finally, chemokine CC motif ligand 20 (CCL20), marker gene of human psoriasis skin disease, was significantly suppressed in the hexane, dichloromethane, and ethyl acetate fractions. These results suggested its anti-inflammatory and skin soothing effect and the possibility of development as an excellent skin soothing natural cosmetic material in the future through future clinical trials.

• Korean journal of food and cookery science
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• v.21 no.1 s.85
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• pp.84-93
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• 2005

The antibacterial activities of methanol extract and systematic solvent fractions( -hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, and butanol) from Korean common type figs at different ripening stages were tested by the broth dilution method against 8 representative food-poisoning bacteria- : L. monocytogenes, S. aureus, S. enteritidis, E. coli O157:H7, E. coli, Y. enterocolitica, V. parahaemolyticus, and S. typhimurium. The methanol extracts of unripened I and II showed stronger activity than that of the ripened figs especially against L. monocytogenes, S. enteritidis, E. coli O157:H7, Y. parahaemolyticus and S. typhimurium in 10 mg/mL. The systematic solvent fractions showed stronger antibacterial activities than the methanol extract, even al the lower concentrations. The hexane fraction of ripened figs showed higher growth inhibition than those of unripened I and II against L. monocytogenes, E. coli O157:H7, Y. enterocolitica and V. parahaemolyticus. The chloroform fraction showed strong antibacterial activity in all ripening stages against E. coli O157:H7 and V. parahaemolyticus. The butanol fraction showed better inhibition activity in unripened I and II than in the ripened figs. The hexane and chloroform fractions showed inhibition activity of more than $75\%$ against E. coli O157:H7, V. parahaemolyticus in 0.5 mg/mL. Each fraction showed a little different antibacterial activity according to the ripening stages of the fruits and the tested strains. Especially, figs in the unripened II stage revealed superior activity relatively and the hexane and chloroform fractions revealed the strongest activity, followed by the butanol fraction, while the ethylacetate and water fractions hardly showed any activity.