• Journal of Life Science
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• v.26 no.11
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• pp.1253-1258
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• 2016

Although major advances have been achieved in our understanding and treatment of diseases in many areas of medicine, relatively few improvements have been made in the area of gastrointestinal (GI) motor function. The dried root of Codonopsis pilosula (Franch.) Nannf. (CP) has been used as a traditional folk medicine for improving poor GI function in East Asia, including China and Korea. In the present study, neither aqueous (CP-W) nor ethanolic (CP-E) extracts of CP showed significant toxicity, even at an oral dose of 5 g/kg to mice. The effects of CP-W and CP-E on GI motor function were investigated by measuring in vivo the gastric emptying rate (GER) and intestinal transit rate (ITR) in mice. In normal mice, the ITR was significantly increased by CP-W in a dose-dependent manner, whereas the GER was not significantly affected by any CP extracts. The ITR was significantly retarded in the mice with experimental GI motility dysfunction (i.e., peritoneal irritation by acetic acid) compared with that in normal mice. However, the retardation was significantly recovered by the pre-treatment of CP-W in a dose-dependent manner. The above results suggest that CP-W might be a potential prokinetic agent preventing or alleviating GI motility dysfunctions in human patients.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.735-739
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• 2019

The dried rhizomes and roots of Gentiana scabra (GS) have been frequently prescribed as a traditional folk medicine in East Asia (including China, Japan, and Korea) for the treatment of various pathophy-siological conditions, such as inflammatory skin diseases, anorexia, indigestion, gastric infections, and diabetes mellitus. In the present study, the effects of aqueous (GS-W) and ethanolic (GS-E) extracts of GS on gastrointestinal (GI) motor function were investigated by measuring the in vivo gastric emptying rate (GER) and the intestinal transit rate (ITR) in mice. The GER was significantly increased by GS-W at a dose of 1 g/kg. The ITR was significantly increased by GS-W (at doses of 0.1 and 1 g/kg) or GS-E (at a dose of 1 g/kg) in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, the ITR value of GS-W (at a dose of 1 g/kg) appeared to be higher than that of cisapride, which was the most prominent prokinetic agent in the 1900s but was removed from the market in 2000 due to its fatal side effects. The above results suggest that GS-W might be a potential prokinetic agent to replace cisapride.

• Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.103-110
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• 1993

Microcapsules(Mc) of cephalexin (CEPH), using Eudragit RS, RL, L, S and polyethylene glycol 1540, were evaluated biopharmaceutically. The area under the curve of CEPH-Eudragit RS/RL Mc administered orally once was larger than that of cephalexin powder twice every 6 hrs. Controlledrelease effectiveness and the absorption rate effectiveness, two important parameters of Vallner's method, of CEPH-Eudragit RS/RL Mc indicate that these Mc can be good sustained-release preparations. And a simple pharmacokinetic model is introduced which allows the gastric emptying and intestinal-transit rates of a drug itself and a solid-state drug contained in Mc. Decreasing $K_r$, without change in $K_a$, showed that the rate-limiting step of absorption moved from absorption step to releasestep.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.260-265
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• 2014

Dried Citrus unshiu peels (Aurantii Nobilis Pericarpium; ANP) are used as a traditional folk medicine for the treatment of gastrointestinal (GI) motility disorders in East Asia, including Korea. In the present study, an ethanolic extract of ANP (ANP-E) exhibited no significant toxicity in mice, even at an oral dose of 5 g/kg. The effects of ANP-E on GI motor function were investigated by measuring the intestinal transit rate (ITR) of Evans blue in normal mice and mice with experimental GI motility dysfunction (i.e., peritoneal irritation by acetic acid; PIA). In normal mice, ANP-E significantly increased the ITR in a dose-dependent manner. The ITR in the PIA mice was significantly retarded compared to that in the normal mice. However, ANP-E significantly inhibited this retardation in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, in all the models, the potency of ANP-E appeared to be same or higher than that of cisapride, which was used predominantly for the treatment of various GI motility disorders in humans in the 1900s but was removed from the market in 2000 due to fatal side effects. The results suggest that ANP-E has potential as a new prokinetic agent that could be used as a substitute for cisapride.