• Journal of Life Science
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• v.30 no.9
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• pp.763-771
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• 2020

Korean ginseng (Panax ginseng) generally has a good safety profile and contains many bioactive substances, such as ginsenosides or panaxosides. Korean red ginseng might help to stabilize the sympathetic nervous system and improve cognition in individuals. Soft red ginseng is produced by new processing technology. This study focused on investigating whether soft red ginseng produced under the new processing technology reduces or improves the existing antioxidant effects. No significant difference in 2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) scavenging activity was found between soft red ginseng and ready-made red ginseng (p<0.05). Soft red ginseng extract showed higher 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate (DPPH) and hydroxyl radical (OH) scavenging activity than other ginseng extracts. OH scavenging activity was significantly different across three groups (raw ginseng, soft red ginseng, and red ginseng sap) (p<0.05). Nitric oxide (NO) scavenging activity was also significantly different among raw ginseng, soft red ginseng, and purchased red ginseng liquid products (p<0.05). Many calcium crystals appeared on the electron microscope in soft red ginseng. Magnesium and potassium showed no significant difference between soft red ginseng and hard red ginseng. The extract of soft red ginseng scavenged different free radicals efficiently due to the presence of DPPH and OH and may help treat free radical-induced diseases.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.250-256
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• 2015

Background: It has been known that ginseng can be applied as a potential nutraceutical for memory impairment; however, experiments with animals of old age are few. Methods: To determine the memory enhancing effect of red ginseng, C57BL/6 mice (21 mo old) were given experimental diet pellets containing 0.12% red ginseng extract (approximately 200 mg/kg/d) for 3 mo. Young and old mice (4 mo and 21 mo old, respectively) were used as the control group. The effect of red ginseng, which ameliorated memory impairment in aged mice, was quantified using Y-maze test, novel objective test, and Morris water maze. Red ginseng ameliorated age-related declines in learning and memory in older mice. In addition, red ginseng's effect on the induction of inducible nitric oxide synthase and proinflammatory cytokines was investigated in the hippocampus of aged mice. Results: Red ginseng treatment suppressed the production of age-processed inducible nitric oxide synthase, cyclooxygenase-2, tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$, and interleukin-$1{\beta}$ expressions. Moreover, it was observed that red ginseng had an antioxidative effect on aged mice. The suppressed glutathione level in aged mice was restored with red ginseng treatment. The antioxidative-related enzymes Nrf2 and HO-1 were increased with red ginseng treatment. Conclusion: The results revealed that when red ginseng is administered over long periods, age-related decline of learning and memory is ameliorated through anti-inflammatory activity.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.188-192
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• 1998

We established the model of clonogenic assay with human tumor cell line such as Calu-3 (lung carcinoma), HEC- lB (endometrial adenocarcinoma) , HEp-2 (larnyx carcinoma), Hs-5787 (breast carcinoma), K-562 (chronic myelogenous leukemia), SF-188 (brain carcinoma), SNU-1 (stomach carcinoma) and WiDr (colon carcinoma) . We investigated growth inhibition of solvent (EtOH, MeOH) and water (100$^{\circ}C$, 121$^{\circ}C$) extracts from Korean red ginseng by clonogenic assay. The results of clonogenic assay showed that EtOH extract had growth inhibition against Calu-3, SF-188 and SNU-1, MeOH extract had growth inhibition against Calu-3, Hs-5787, K-562, and WiDr, but water extract at 100$^{\circ}C$ and water extract at 121$^{\circ}C$ had not growth inhibition against used cell lines.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.10
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• pp.1668-1674
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• 2016

Red ginseng, a steamed and sun-dried ginseng, is a popular health-promoting food in Korea and other Asian countries. We introduced nanofertilizer technology using gold nanoparticles in an effort to develop red ginseng with an elevated level of ginsenosides, the main active compounds of ginseng. Shoots of 6-year-old ginseng plants were fertilized three times with colloidal gold nanoparticle sprays. Red ginseng extract was prepared from the main roots. The concentrations of gold and ginsenosides were measured following gold nanoparticle treatment. To evaluate the anti-inflammatory effects, mouse peritoneal macrophages of male BALB/c mouse were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide plus interferon-γ in the presence of extracts from red ginseng with or without gold nanoparticle treatment. The content of ginsenosides, such as Rg1, Re, Rf, and Rb1, increased in ginseng treated with gold nanofertilizer whereas the steaming process increased only the levels of Rd and Rg3. The levels of nitric oxide, inducible nitric oxide synthase, and interleukin-6, but not tumor necrosis factor-α, were more suppressed in macrophages treated with extract from gold nanoparticle-treated red ginseng. Our results show that the use of a colloidal gold nanoparticle fertilizer improved the synthesis of ginsenosides in ginseng and enhanced the anti-inflammatory effects of red ginseng. Further research is required to elucidate the causal factors for the gold-induced change in ginsenoside synthesis and to determine the in vivo effect of gold nanoparticle-treated ginseng.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.337-342
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• 2007

To obtain the data on the risk assessment of residue levels of organophosphorus and organochlorine pesticides in fresh ginseng and red ginseng extract, the residual pesticides in samples are surveyed with GC-NPD and GC-ECD for quantitative analysis and GC-MSD for qualitative analysis. The residual organophosphorus pesticides, such as diazinon, pyrimethanil, tolclofos-methyl, metalaxyl, diethofencarb, parathion, cyprodinil, tolylfluanid and kresoxim-methyl, are not detected in fresh ginseng from Punggi. The residual organophosphorus pesticides except tolclofos-methyl are not detected in fresh ginseng from Sangju. Average amount of tolclofos-methyl in fresh ginseng from Sangju are $0.054{\pm}0.008\;mg/kg$, representing $18{\pm}2%$ of MRL of 0.03 mg/kg on fresh ginseng in Korea. The residual organochlorine pesticides, such as BHC isomer, DDT isomer, aldrin, azoxystrobin, captan, cypermethrin, deltamethrin, dieldrin, difenoconazole, endosulfan-sulfate, endrin, fenhexamid, quintozene, ${\alpha}$-endosulfan and ${\beta}$-endosulfan, are not detected in fresh ginseng from Punggi and Sangju. The residual organophosphorus and organochlorine pesticides in red ginseng extract from Punggi and Sangju are not detected.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.421-428
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• 2011

This study evaluated cholineresterase inhibitory activity of Korean white ginseng extract (WGE), red ginseng extract (RGE), and black ginseng extract (BGE) and the cholinergic effect on scopolamine (SCOP)-induced amnesic mice. WGE, RGE, and BGE inhibited acetylcholineserase (AChE), as well as butyrylcholineserase (BuChE) in a concentration-dependent manner. BGE presented strong inhibition of AChE with an $IC_{50}$ value of 1.72 mg/mL, followed by WGE (5.89 mg/mL), RGE (6.30 mg/mL), respectively. The inhibitory activity of the three ginseng extracts on BuChE showed similar values among the groups. To better understand the mechanisms of the possible effect of ginseng extract on the cholinergic function, this study assessed the expression of the cholinergic markers of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and AChE using western blot and RT-PCR analysis in the brains of amnesic mice. Treatment with ginseng extracts led to inhibition of AChE expression and, the activation of ChAT expression in the hippocampus and the cerebral cortex of amnesic mice as induced by SCOP. The results suggest that ginseng extracts including BGE, appear to modulate the metabolism of acetylchoine (ACh), which would greatly increase synaptic ACh levels and most potently revert SCOP-induced amnesia.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.19-24
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• 1976

Ginseng extracts were frnctionelod into several fractions with carious organic solvents, and the effects of these fractions on the activity of aminoacyl-tRHA synthetase was examined. Fractions which showed positive effect on the activity of the aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase were obtained both from white ginseng and red ginseng. The total methanol extract of whit ginseng and the ether extract from the total methanol extract of red ginseng gave Positive results. Therefore it may be Presumed that the Positive components have rather nonpolar nature.

• Mycobiology
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.368-375
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• 2014

Red ginseng (Panax ginseng), a Korean traditional medicinal plant, contains a variety of ginsenosides as major functional components. It is necessary to remove sugar moieties from the major ginsenosides, which have a lower absorption rate into the intestine, to obtain the aglycone form. To screen for microorganisms showing bioconversion activity for ginsenosides from red ginseng, 50 yeast strains were isolated from Korean traditional meju (a starter culture made with soybean and wheat flour for the fermentation of soybean paste). Twenty strains in which a black zone formed around the colony on esculin-yeast malt agar plates were screened first, and among them 5 strains having high ${\beta}$-glucosidase activity on p-nitrophenyl-${\beta}$-D-glucopyranoside as a substrate were then selected. Strain JNO301 was finally chosen as a bioconverting strain in this study on the basis of its high bioconversion activity for red ginseng extract as determined by thin-layer chromatography (TLC) analysis. The selected bioconversion strain was identified as Candida allociferrii JNO301 based on the nucleotide sequence analysis of the 18S rRNA gene. The optimum temperature and pH for the cell growth were $20{\sim}30^{\circ}C$ and pH 5~8, respectively. TLC analysis confirmed that C. allociferrii JNO301 converted ginsenoside Rb1 into Rd and then into F2, Rb2 into compound O, Rc into compound Mc1, and Rf into Rh1. Quantitative analysis using high-performance liquid chromatography showed that bioconversion of red ginseng extract resulted in an increase of 2.73, 3.32, 33.87, 16, and 5.48 fold in the concentration of Rd, F2, compound O, compound Mc1, and Rh1, respectively.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.159-179
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• 1988

This study was carried out to investigate the inhibitory effects of red ginseng extract on preneoplastic nodule formation in the rat liver using a rapid bioassay of hepatocarcinogenesis. Wistar male rats in test groups were fed diets containing 3.0, 0.3 or 003% of red genseng extract for 6 weeks after 2 week of dosing with diethylnitrosamine (DEAN, 200 mg/kg B.W., I.P.) or saline solution. The rats in the control groups were treated with DENA or saline alone. Three weeks after the beginning of the experiment, the two-thirds partial hepatectomy was performed on all animals. The inhibitory effects were investigated by measuring the number, total area and size of hyperplastic nodules enhanced by the 2/3 partial hepatectomy following induction with DENA. The results obtained were summarized as follows: 1. In general, the body weight gains of the rats fed diets containing red ginseng extract were higher than those of other groups.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.123-130
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• 1982

Studies were carried out to clarify the effect of ginsenoside-Rbl -Rbr and acid hydrolyzatps of ginsenoside-Rbl, -Rb2 (HRbl, HRbf) on lipolysis and lipogenesis induced by epinephrine, glucagon, ACTH (adrenocorticotrophic hormone), TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone) and insulin in rat adipose tissilr. HRbl , HRb2 slightly inhibited lipolysis induced by epinephine. glucagon and TSH. ACTH-induced lipolysis in fat tissue slices was significantly inhibited by ginsenoside -Rbl, -Rb2, HRbl and HRb2, particulary HRb2. None of ginsenoside-Rbl, -Rb2, HRbl and HRb2 accelerated insulin-stimulated lipogenesis in fat calls. Among ginseng products, extract powder (freeze dried), extract powder (spray dried), red ginseng powder inhibited ACTH-induced lipolysis in adipose tissue slices, but red ginseng extract not affect them.