• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.141-150
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• 2016

Background: Adipocyte-macrophage communication plays a critical role regulating white adipose tissue (WAT) inflammatory gene expression. Because WAT inflammation contributes to the development of metabolic diseases, there is significant interest in understanding how exogenous compounds regulate the adipocyte-macrophage crosstalk. An aqueous (AQ) extract of North American (NA) ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) was previously shown to have strong inflammo-regulatory properties in adipocytes. This study examined whether different ginseng extracts influence adipocyte-macrophage crosstalk, as well as WAT inflammatory gene expression. Methods: The effects of AQ and ethanol (EtOH) ginseng extracts ($5{\mu}g/mL$) on adipocyte and macrophage inflammatory gene expression were studied in 3T3-L1 and RAW264.7 cells, respectively, using real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Adipose tissue organ culture was also used to examine the effects of ginseng extracts on epididymal WAT (EWAT) and inguinal subcutaneous WAT (SWAT) inflammatory gene expression. Results: The AQ extract caused significant increases in the expression of common inflammatory genes (e.g., Mcp1, Ccl5, Tnf-${\alpha}$, Nos2) in both cell types. Culturing adipocytes in media from macrophages treated with the AQ extract, and vice versa, also induced inflammatory gene expression. Adipocyte Ppar-${\gamma}$ expression was reduced with the AQ extract. The AQ extract strongly induced inflammatory gene expression in EWAT, but not in SWAT. The EtOH extract had no effect on inflammatory gene expression in either both cell types or WAT. Conclusion: These findings provide important new insights into the inflammo-regulatory role of NA ginseng in WAT.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.297-309
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• 1990

Ginseng is renowned for both its medicinal and herbal uses and successful cultivation of Panax ginseng in Asia and Panax Vtiinvtiefolilim in North America has until recently taken place in the native geographical ranges of the plants. As a consequence of the potential high capital return and anticipated increases in consumer consumption, commercial cultivation of American ginseng now occurs well outside the native range of the plant in North America. In fact, the region of greatest expansion of cultivation is in the semi-arid interior region of British Columbia, Canada. Linked with this expansion is the potential domination of the ginseng industry by agricultural corporations. In the interior of British Columbia, the native decidous forest environment of eastern North America is simulated with elevated polypropylene shade and a sllrface covering of straw mulch. The architecture of these environments is designed to permit maximillm machinery useage and to minimize labour requirements. Further, with only a four-year growth cycle, plant densities in the gardens are high. In this hot, semiarid environment, producers believe they have a competitive advantage over other regions in North America because of the low precipitation rates. This helps to minimize atmospheric humidity such that the conditions for fungal disease development are reduced. If soil moisture levels become limited, supplemental water can be provided by irrigation. The nature of the radiation and energy balance regimes of the shade and much environment promotes high soil moistilre levels. Also, the modified environment reduces soil heating. This can result in an aerial environment for the plant that is stressful and a rooting zone environment that is sub-optimal. The challenge of further refining the man modified environment for enhanced plant growth and health still remains.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.188-194
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• 2003

Rust-spot on North American ginseng roots (Panax quinquefolius L.) is considered a physiological, not a pathological disorder. Ginseng rust-spot starts as an orange spot on the surface of the root and may spread forming a sunken, round to irregular lesion. 5 mm in diameter. Pieces of root, 7 mm in length and containing a rust-spotted lesion, were embedded in agar and sectioned using a vibratome. These sections and hand sections, cut with a two-sided razor blade, were examined using fluorescence microscopy. The 4-5 cell layers of the periderm were destroyed in the area of the lesion and orange substance:, were deposited in and around the lesion. Sections stained with vanillin-HCI and viewed using bright field microscopy confirmed that the orange substances were phenolic compounds. Scanning electron micros-copy showed that the periderm had pulled away from the root, or was completely destroyed, in the area of the lesion. The smooth surface of the lesion indicates the deposition of phenolic compounds in surrounding cells as a wound response. Roots sprayed or dipped in ethephon (1500 mgㆍL$^{-1}$ ) developed rust-spots, more so at 21$\pm$2$^{\circ}C$ than at 3$\pm$0.2$^{\circ}C$. Roots held at 21$\pm$2$^{\circ}C$ were yellowish and developed white cell proliferations. Comparable control roots also developed rust-spots likely due to the high undecomposed organic matter content of the incubation soilless mix.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.161-167
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• 1998

American ginseng plants (Panax quinquefolium L.) of various ages were harvested every two weeks during each of three growing seasons and dry matter yield of components and root respiration determined. Shoot dry weight was about 0.5 g, 2.5 g and 4 g for 2, 3 and 4-year-old plants, respectively and fruit dry weight was as much as 50% of this in 3- and 4-year-.old plants. Root dry weight decrease by 30~50% as shoots emerged and at the end of the season was about 2 g, 3.5 g and 5 g in 2, 3, 4 and 5-year-old plants, respectively. Shoot and root dry weight were linearly related with an approximate 1:2 ratio. Root respiration rate at 2$0^{\circ}C$ in the dark was about 5 $\mu\textrm{g}$ CO2 g-1 DW(dry weight) min-1 in the early season, then doubled within 50 days as shoots emerged, and thereafter declined over the season to 2~5 $\mu\textrm{g}$ CO2 g-1 DW min-1. The Q10 for dark respiration over the interval from 10 to 2$0^{\circ}C$ was 1.58. Root respiration rate and shoot growth rate was positively linearly related in all ages of plants. Key words: Dry weight, partitioning.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.14-22
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• 2007

As the zygotic embryo of North American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) matured during stratification over 203 days it grew from 0.75 to 5.2 mm. Embryo excision and culturing on media containing different concentrations of two growth regulators, gibberellic acid ($GA_3$, 1 to 10 ${\mu}M$) and benzyladenine (BA, 1 to 5 ${\mu}M$), during stratification, showed that shoot and root number and the shoot, root and cotyledon length increased with increased stratification time. Gibberellic acid was the more effective growth regulator for increasing shoot and root number and shoot, root and cotyledon lengths. Immature embryos (stratified for up to 63 days) needed growth regulators for further development. Cultures on $GA_3$ at the last culture date (stratified for 203 days) when embryos were mature, produced multiple shoots but there was no effect of $GA_3$ concentration. Benzyladenine inhibited shoot and root growth regardless of embryo stratification. Growth regulators had little effect on cotyledon length of mature embryos. Embryos cultured on $GA_3$ combined with BA were green on all culture dates whereas greening in the control and BA treatments increased with culture date. The BA treatments induced 100% swelling of the embryos on the final culture date while in the control and $GA_3$ treatments there was no swelling. There was little or no curling in the control and BA treatments and a linear decrease in curling with culture date in the $GA_3$ and $GA_3$ + BA treatments.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.175-182
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• 2010

North American ginseng seedlings (Panax quinquefolius L.) were grown in pots in heated greenhouses, in a cool greenhouse, or in the field, in 11 experiments at various times over 16 years. Crop establishment, dry matter partitioning, photosynthesis, radiation use efficiency and carbon budget were measured and/or calculated in some years. Once the seedling canopy, of about $20\;cm^2$ per seedling, and a leaf area index of 0.37, was established, about 40 days after germination, full canopy display lasted about 87 days. Only 16.6% of the incoming solar radiation was intercepted by the crop, the remainder falling on the mulched soil surface. Total and root dry matter accumulations in the cool greenhouse and in the field were about double that in the heated greenhouses. Partitioning of dry matter to roots (economic yield or harvest index) in the cool greenhouse and in the field was 73% whereas it was 62.5% in the heated greenhouses. The relationship between root dry matter and radiation interception during the full canopy period was linear with growth efficiencies of $2.92\;mg\;MJ^{-1}$ at 4.8% of incoming radiation and $0.30\;mg\;MJ^{-1}$ at 68% of incoming radiation. A photosynthetic rate of $0.39\;g\;m^{-2}\;h^{-1}$ was attained at light saturation of about $150\;{\mu}mol\;m^{-2}\;s^{-1}$ (7.5% of full sunlight); dark respiration was $0.03\;g\;m^{-2}\;h^{-1}$, about 8.5% of maximum assimilation rate. Estimates of dry matter accumulation by growth analysis and by $CO_2$ uptake were similar, 6.21 vs. 7.62 mg $CO_2$, despite several assumptions in $CO_2$ uptake calculations.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.155-160
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• 2008

The North American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) seed crop varies from year to year. The ability to hold stratified seed for a year would ensure continuity of seed supply and no interruption in production cycles. Seed drying and rehydration protocols at room temperature $(21{\pm}2^{\circ}C)$ were developed. These protocols and seed storage at 4 ${\pm}1^{\circ}C$ and 35%, or variable, relative humidity (RH) allowed the holding of stratified seed for one year and then establishment of the following five treatments in field plots: Trt.1 : dried 2005 stratified seed (seed harvested Fall 2004) held at $4^{\circ}C$ and at variable humidity; Trt.2 : 2006 stratified seed planted directly into the field; Trt.3 : 2005 stratified seed dried in October 2005 and held at $4^{\circ}C$ and 35% RH ; Trt.4 : 2005 stratified seed held in moist sand from October to December 2005 at room temperature $(21{\pm}2^{\circ}C)$ and then in December dried and held at $4^{\circ}C$ and 35 % RH; Trt.5 : 2005 stratified seed held in moist sand from October to December 2005 at room temperature and then in December dried and held at $-12^{\circ}C$ Seedling emergence was best in Trts. 2 and 4 with 67.3 and 65.1% respectively which is similar to the industry expected rate of 68% after regular stratification. Seedling growth was similar in Trts. 2 and 4 with root dry weights of 172 and 159 mg respectively in mid-August. Therefore, if holding stratified seed in August/September for one year is desired, the seed can be placed in moist sand until December and then dried and stored at $4^{\circ}C$ and 35% RH. These seed can be planted in the following August/September and will germinate and grow in the following year to give an acceptable crop.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.10-16
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• 2002

In replicated field trials, the efficacy of pentachloronitrobenzene (PCNB; quintozene) for control of damping-off of ginseng seedlings was found to be affected by timing of application and formulation. Application at the time of seeding and prior to placement of straw mulch was found to provide the moat consistent level of disease control. However, decline in plant stand during the four-year production cycle resulted in most treatments providing similar levels of plant populations at harvest. Soil residues of pentachloronitrobenzene were generally highest (1 $\mu\textrm{g}$ PCNB/g soil) in those treatments that exhibited the highest levels of disease control in the seedling year. Straw contained high levels of quintozene after application. Beet seed assays with artificially-infested soils indicated that current use rates provide an amount of product suitable for high levels of disease control.

• Proceedings of the Ginseng society Conference
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• 1988.08a
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• pp.141-146
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• 1988

Dwarf ginseng (Panax trifolius L.) is a member of the ginseng family (Araliaceae). which is indigenous to North America and is distributed from Southern Canada to the Northern United States. In total. nine compounds were isolated from the leaves of Dwarf gineng. Of these. four were identified as flavonoids and five were found to be ginsenosides. Two of the flavonoids were identified to be kaempferol-3. 7-dirhamnoside and kaempferol-3-gluco-7-rhamnoside. Four of the ginsenosides were identified as notoginsenoside-Fe. ginsenoside-Rd. ginsenoside-Rc and $ginsenoside-Rb_1$ The common aglycone of these ginsenosides was shown to be (20S)-protopanaxadiol. The identification of flavonoids and ginsenosides from the root. stem. leaf. flower and fruit of Dwarf ginseng was detected by Two-Dimensional Thin-Layer Chromatography (2D-TLC) and High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). The quantitation of flavonoids and ginsenosides from the root. stem. leaf. flower and fruit of Dwarf ginseng and related species such as Korean gineng (Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer) and American ginseng (Panax quinquefolium L.) was analyzed by HPLC only. Three flavonoids (Kaempferol derivatives) labelled compound 1 $(10.8\%)$, compound 3 ($2.8\%$), and compound 4 ($8.4\%)$ were found in the root of Dwarf ginseng but not found in the roots of Korean ginseng and American ginseng. This is the first time that flavonoids have been found and identified in roots of the ginseng family (Araliaceae).

• Journal of Ginseng Culture
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• v.3
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• pp.38-53
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• 2021

This research uncovered that the world-renowned British Museum has displayed ginseng as part of notable exhibitssince its opening. The British Museum was established in 1753 upon the bequest of Sir Hans Sloane, a famous physician, scientist, and collector. At the heart of his collections was the vast amount of vegetable substance specimens. This study first reconstructed Sloane's collection activities in the context of British Imperialism and botanical science in the early modern period. It then traced the origins and routes by which four ginseng specimens were obtained: Radix Ginseng or ninzin from China (VS 532), Ginseng. Id (VS 8,198), the roots and seeds of ginseng (VS 7,825), and ginseng root (VS 12,140). These specimens were presumed to originate from one type of Korean ginseng from China, a Japanese ginseng variant from Japan, and two ginseng species from North America. The English public learned about ginseng and ginseng exhibits via a flourishing printing culture. In England, Korean ginseng was appreciated much more highly than American ginseng.