• Herbal Formula Science
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.145-154
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• 2010

Objective : Licorice has been used for treating digestive disorder and also recommended as a detoxification agent. Liquiritigenin, a component of licorice, has been reported to have various biological activities. In this study, we aimed to establish the analytical method for liquiritigenin content in licorice and the processing method for the enhancement of liquiritigenin content in licorice. Methods : Processing was accomplished by roasting licorice at $250^{\circ}C$ for indicated time periods (5-20 min). Analysis of liquiritigrnin from roasted licorice was conducted using UPLC(Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography). Results : We established UPLC method for the analysis of liquiritigenin using water : acetonitrile gradient as mobile phase. Furthermore, we standardized the processing condition of licorice to enhance liquiritigenin content using UPLC method. Processing of licorice was accomplished by roasting at $250^{\circ}C$ for indicated time periods (5-20 min) and by pretreating with 50% of acetic acid or 30% ethanol for 24 h. By roasting licorice, the liquiritigenin contents in the licorice were increased. The best roasting time of licorice was 6 min, while roasting for the time above 8 min resulted in diminishing liquiritigenin contents. Moreover, pretreatment with 50% of acetic acid or 30% ethanol picked up liquiritigenin contents in roasted licorice. Conclusion : The adequate processing condition of licorice for the enhancement of liquiritigenin contents was obtained by pretreating licorice with 50% of acetic acid or 30% ethanol for 24 h and then by roasting at $250^{\circ}C$ for 6 min.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.379-387
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• 2024

Breast cancer (BC) is most commonly diagnosed worldwide. Liquiritigenin is a flavonoid found in various species of the Glycyrrhiza genus, showing anti-tumor activity. This article was to explore the influences of liquiritigenin on the biological behaviors of BC cells and its underlying mechanism. BC cells were treated with liquiritigenin alone or transfected with oe-HSP90 before liquiritigenin treatment. RT-qPCR and Western blotting were employed to examine the levels of HSP90, Snail, E-cadherin, HSC70, and LAMP-2A. Cell viability, proliferation, migration, and invasion were evaluated by performing MTT, colony formation, scratch, and Transwell assays, respectively. Liquiritigenin treatment reduced HSP90 and Snail levels and enhanced E-cadherin expression as well as inhibiting the proliferation, migration, and invasion of BC cells. Moreover, liquiritigenin treatment decreased the expression of HSC70 and LAMP-2A, proteins related to chaperone-mediated autophagy (CMA). HSP90 overexpression promoted the CMA, invasion, and migration of BC cells under liquiritigenin treatment. Liquiritigenin inhibits HSP90-mediated CMA, thereby suppressing BC cell growth.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.166-174
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• 2015

In this study, an efficient whole cell-based biotransformation for the production of liquiritigenin was developed using Laetiporus sulphureus CS0218 as biocatalyst and aqueous extracts of Glycyrrhiza uralensis as co-substrate, respectively. In order to determine the efficacy of this method, the optimal bioconversion conditions including mycelial growth, three important enzyme activities (${\beta}$-glucosidase, ${\alpha}$-rhamnosidase and ${\beta}$-xylosidase), and apparent viscosity of culture broth were monitored. After optimization, aqueous extracts of G. uralensis were added to the culture medium to directly produce algycone liquiritigenin. By applying this strategy, 67.5% of liquiritin was converted to liquiritigenin at pH 3.0 after 9 days of incubation and finally liquiritigenin was purified from the reaction mixture. And then, their biological activities including anti-oxidant and superoxide dismutase were observed. In fact, purified liquiritigenin was capable of bi-directional functions (i.e., either up-regulation or down-regulation of SIRT1 which is associated with aging). The results indicate that this strategy would be beneficial to produce biologically active liquiritigenin and could be used in pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food applications.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.17-24
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• 2007

Objectives : Licorice has been commonly used as a detoxification agent. We previously reported that licorice and its component, liquiritigenin, exhibits cytoprotective activity against Pb-induced toxicity. The present study was conducted to evaluate the effect of liquiritigenin on the lead-induced cytotoxicity in PC-12 cells. Methods : PC-12 cells were pre-treated with liquiritigenin, and further incubated with lead 100 ${\mu}M$ for $12^{\sim}48$ hours. The viability of PC-12 cells was measured by MTT assay, and the levels of proteins were analysed by western blot. Results : Severe cytotoxicity was induced and nitric oxide (NO) production was augmented by the exposure of lead. Liquiritigenin protected cells from lead-induced cytoxicity and reduced NO production in a dose-dependent manner. The inhibition of NO production was due to the suppression of iNOS protein via the inhibition of $NF-{\kappa}B$ nuclear translocation, determined by western blot analysis. Conclusions : These results suggest that liquiritigenin may exert cytoprotective effect against lead toxicity by inhibiting NO production.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.74-78
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• 2008

Liquiritin in licorice (Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch) extract was treated with three different plant crude enzymes (Prunus dulcis enzyme; PDE, P. armeniaca enzyme; PAE and P. persica enzyme; PPE) for biotransformation. The resulting product of liquiritin was analyzed by TLC and HPLC. The ${\beta}glucosidase$ activities of crude enzymes were 259.6 U/g (PDE), 407.6 U/g (PAE) and 445.8 U/g (PPE), respectively. The liquiritin was converted to liquiritigenin after 12 hours of incubation with the crude enzymes. Liquiritigenin content reached its maximum level after the treatment with PPE at $37^{\circ}C$.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.386-392
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• 2014

The present study was aimed at investigating the antimicrobial activities of licorice's active ingredients. Four samples of licorice ingredients (glycyrrhizin, liquiritin, liquiritigenin, and isoliquiritigenin) were evaluated for their antimicrobial activities against six skin microorganisms. The bioassay applied for determining the antimicrobial effects employed a disc diffusion assay, the minimum inhibitory concentration, and the challenge test. The ingredients showed antibacterial activities. Especially, isoliquiritigenin has significant antimicrobial activities against two Gram-positive (Bacillus subtilis, Propionobacterium acnes) and two Gramnegative (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) bacteria. These samples had much higher antimicrobial activities than synthetic preservatives. Our results reveal that liquiritigenin and isoliquiritigenin could be useful compounds for the development of antibacterial agents for the preservation of cosmetics and foods. The two flavonoids, liquiritigenin and isoliquiritigenin, sourced from Korea, China, Uzbekistan, were quantified using HPLC. The results demonstrated that Korean licorice has two flavonoids (liquiritigenin, isoliquiritigenin) in much higher quantities than was observed in the licorice obtained from the two other countries. Thus, isoliquiritigenin and Korean licorice extract represent new candidates for antimicrobial agents.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.35 no.4 s.139
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• pp.309-314
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• 2004

By treating crude enzyme extract from Aspergillus kawachii, the liquiritigenin content in the licorice (Glycyrrhizae Radix) was significantly increased. The liquiritigenin content reached its maximum level (45.7 mg/g licorice extract) after 60 min of incubation with the crude enzyme extract at $37^{\circ}C$, while the inactivated crude enzyme treated control contained trace amount (about 0.11 mg/g) of liquiritigenin. The enzyme-treated licorice extract inhibited more than 50% DPPH radical at 100 ppm and this was about two times higher activity compared to the enzyme-untreated control.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.563-568
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• 2015

Liquiritin and its aglycone, liquiritigenin are flavonoid found in licorice that show anti-oxidant and anti-aging properties. In this study, ethosomes loaded with hydrophobic liquiritigenin or liquiritin were prepared as a transdermal delivery system. The particle size, entrapment efficiency, and skin permeability of ethosomes were evaluated. Ethosome containing liquiritigenin was stable up to 2 mM and ethosome containing liquiritin was stable up to 0.75 mM concentration. The particle size of ethosomes containing 0.75 mM liquiritigenin and liquiritin was 143.85 and 158.90 nm, respectively and the entrapment efficiency was 47.51 and 54.61%, respectively. The entrapment efficiency was improved with increasing concentrations of drugs. Ethosomes loaded with liquiritigenin or liquiritin were superior in skin permeation ability compared to that of 20% ethanol solution and conventional liposomes. These results suggest that ethosomes containing 0.50 mM liquiritigenin or liquiritin are effective for the skin permeation and may be used as an antiaging and antioxidant ingredient in cosmetic formulation.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.10
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• pp.4369-4376
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• 2015

Background: To investigate in-vitro antagonistic effect of low-dose liquiritigenin on gemcitabine-induced capillary leak syndrome (CLS) in pancreatic adenocarcinoma via inhibiting reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated signalling pathways. Materials and Methods: Human pancreatic adenocarcinoma Panc-1 cells and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were pre-treated using low-dose liquiritigenin for 24 h, then added into gemcitabine and incubated for 48 h. Cell viability, apoptosis rate and ROS levels of Panc-1 cells and HUVECs were respectively detected through methylthiazolyldiphenyl-tetrazoliumbromide (MTT) and flow cytometry. For HUVECs, transendothelial electrical resistance (TEER) and transcellular and paracellular leak were measured using transwell assays, then poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP-1) and metal matrix proteinase-9 (MMP9) activity were assayed via kits, mRNA expressions of p53 and Rac-1 were determined through quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR); The expressions of intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1), vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and PARP-1 were measured via western blotting. Results: Low-dose liquiritigenin exerted no effect on gemcitabine-induced changes of cell viability, apoptosis rate and ROS levels in Panc-1 cells, but for HUVECs, liquiritigenin ($3{\mu}M$) could remarkably elevate gemcitabine-induced decrease of cell viability, transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER), pro-MMP9 level and expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 (p<0.01). Meanwhile, it could also significantly decrease gemcitabine-induced increase of transcellular and paracellular leak, ROS level, PARP-1 activity, Act-MMP9 level, mRNA expressions of p53 and Rac-1, expression of PARP-1 and apoptosis rate (p<0.01). Conclusions: Low-dose liquiritigenin exerts an antagonistic effect on gemcitabine-induced leak across HUVECs via inhibiting ROS-mediated signalling pathways, but without affecting gemcitabine-induced Panc-1 cell apoptosis. Therefore, low-dose liquiritigenin might be beneficial to prevent the occurrence of gemcitabine-induced CLS in pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.309-314
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• 2009

Licorice(Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma) is recorded as the root of Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fischer or Glycyrrhiza glabra Linne or Glycyrrhiza inflata Bat.(Leguminosae) in Korean Pharmacopoeia $9^{th}$ edition (KP9) and Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2005(CP2005), Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fischer or Glycyrrhiza glabra Linne in Japanese Pharmacopoeia 2005(JP2005). It is established the content standard of Glycyrrhizin 2.5 % and liquiritin 1% in KP9 and CP2005. But, according to the reports, all Licorice species were not sufficient for content standard of liquiritin 1.0% for licorice in KP9 and CP2005. It shows different content of liquiritin among G. uralensis, G. glabra and G. inflata. Also, it was reported liquiritin, liquiritin apioside are transformed into liquiritigenin by human internal flora. Therefore, we have studied for the pre-treatment condition and analytical method of liquiritigenin; It was good efficinet in 2M HCl reflux(1 hr) for hydrolysis and in methylene chloride for solvent fractionation. And 1% acetic acid in DW(A) and acetonitrile(B) with gradient condition as a mobile phase was most effective in HPLC analytical condition. According to these experimental methods, we have anlayzed content of liquiritigenin about 77 Licorice sample. In this research, it was also examined the content of liquiritin and liquiritigenin for Glycyrrhizae Radix related growing area. According to the results, we suggested the content standard of glycyrrhizin more than 2.5%, liquiritigenin more than 0.7%(after hydrolysis) of licorice.