• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.44-55
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• 2021

Objectives: As the use of herbal medicinal products (HMPs) increases worldwide, systematic verification of the safety of HMPs is required. The induction of cardiotoxicity is one of the major factors in post-approval withdrawal of medicinal products, and drug-induced cardiotoxicity assessment is emerging as an important step in drug development. In the present study, we evaluated human ether-à-go-go-related gene (hERG) potassium channel-related cardiotoxicity to predict the risk of cardiac arrhythmia in thirteen herbal medicines known to have cardiac toxicity. Methods: We measured the inhibition rate of hERG potassium channel activity of 13 medicinal herbal extracts in hERG-expressing HEK 293 cells using an automated patch-clamping system. Quinidine was used as a positive control for inhibition of hERG activity. Results: Extracts of Evodiae Fructus, Strychni Semen, and Corydalis Tuber potently inhibited the activity of hERG, and IC₅₀ values were 3.158, 19.87, and 41.26 ㎍/mL, respectively. Cnidi Fructus, Ephedra Herba, Lithospermi Radix, Polygoni Multiflori Radix, Visci Ramulus et Folium, Asiasari Radix et Rhizoma, and Scolopendra weakly inhibited hERG activity, and the IC₅₀ value for each herbal medicine was more than 400 ㎍/mL. Aconiti Kusnezoffii Tuber and two types of Aconiti Lateralis Radix Preparata (Po and Yeom) had weak inhibitory activity against hERG, and the IC₅₀ values were more than 700 ㎍/mL. The IC₅₀ value of quinidine against hERG was 1.021 𝜇M. Conclusion: Evodiae Fructus, Strychni Semen, and Corydalis Tuber acted as potent inhibitors against hERG. These herbal medicines may cause cardiac arrhythmia through QT prolongation, so care should be taken when taking them.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.104-108
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• 2006

Water extracts of Jehotang were evaluated for their growth-promoting effects on Bifidobacterium longum, Lactobacillus sp., L. acidophilus, and Clostridium perfringens. Addition of Jehotang water extract to modified EG media at 0.1 mg/mL increased growths of B. longum, Lactobacillus sp., and L. acidophilus, with 1.8-fold increase in growth of L. acidophilus compared to that of control. Studies on these strains by agar diffusion method showed Lactobacillus sp. and L. acidophilus were activated by addition of Jehotang extract at 10 mg/disc. Proliferation responses of mice splenocytes and Peyer's patch cells to ConA by LPS-stimulation at 500 mg/kg B.W./day Jehotang extract were investigated in vitro. Upon treatment of 1 mg/mL Jehotang water extract to mice, proliferations of splenocytes and Peyer's patch cells increased 1.4- and 1.6-fold compared to control, respectively. In mice administered Jehotang extract, production of intestinal secretory IgA (sIgA) increased 2.4-fold compared to control. These results indicate water extract of Jehotang stimulated intestinal immune system of mice. In mice treated with Jehotang extract, production of lymphocytes was 4% lower, whereas those of granulocytes and platelets were 4% and slightly higher than control, respectively.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.126-134
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• 2015

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to report that Korean medical treatment is good for deteriorated moderate allergic skin after taking lotus root while getting treatment for contact dermatitis by pain relieving patch.Methods : A 54-year-old woman patient with allergic contact dermatitis received treatment with acupuncture, herbal medicine, etc. We used observation and Visual Anologue Scale(VAS) to evaluate recovery from erythema, pruritus and skin damages.Results : A visible symptoms to the naked eye and VAS scale were effectively decreased after Korean medicine treatments.Conclusions : Korean medical treatments were effective for allergic contact dermatitis deteriorated by lotus root while getting treatment contact dermatitis by pain relieving patch.

• The Journal of Pediatrics of Korean Medicine
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.47-52
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• 2012

Objectives The purpose of this study is to know the effect of Baekhogainsam-Tang on alopecia areata. Methods We decided the treatment principle through abdominal examinations and symptoms. We used herbal medicine (Baekhogainsam-Tang) to increase the roots of hair and hair. Results After the treatment, patients' hair condition had been improved (Hair loss patch diameter decreased from 2.5 cm to 0.5 cm). In addition, patient's physical symptoms were improved. Conclusions This case shows that herbal medicine, which focused on patient's physical symptom, is seemed to be effective in alopecia areata.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.95-113
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• 2016

Objectives : The purpose of this review is to introduce the recent advance in allergic rhinitis and to provide help in establishing strategy and selection of drugs for Korean medical treatment of allergic rhinitis. Methods : We searched articles about allergic rhinitis comprehensively in PubMed, CNKI, JStage, KISTI. And in order to reflect clinical situation, we also reviewed some profession's writing for practitioners. Results : This review discussed allergic rhinitis's epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis. We found many standardized clinical practice guideline have been published in this field. And some guideline reflected accumulation of medical evidence on interventions in Korean medicine. It suggested that acupuncture, herbal medicine, herbal patch are useful to prevention and alleviate allergic symptoms. But some interventions have heterogeneity due to each nation's medical background. Conclusions : Acupuncture therapy is now recommended world widely for treating allergic rhinitis. But other interventions of Korean medicine are not well recognized in the same manner. We need more research to identify mechanism and rigorous clinical trials to clarify efficacy and safety of Korean medicine intervention.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.323-329
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• 2009

The prescriptions (DB-1-DB-5) were prepared with the active herbal medicines, Acanthopanax senticosus, Glycyrrhiza uralensis, Polygonatum odoratum, and Cichorium intybus. The most active crude polysaccharide fraction (DB-2-3), which was isolated through the fractionation of hot-water extract from DB-2, was significantly reduced by periodate oxidation (52.7 and 63.7%) on intestinal immune system modulating and anticancer activity. When DB-2-3 was further fractionated by column chromatographies, DB-2-3IIc-2 showed the most potent activities. In addition, DB-2-3IIc stimulated the proliferation of bone marrow cells via Peyer's patch in dose-dependent pattern by oral administration. The metastasis of colon 26-M3.1 lung carcinoma had significantly inhibited in mice fed DB-2-3IIc at 1 mg/mouse (43.8%). DB-2-3IIc-2 mainly contained uronic acid (46.1%) and 42.5% of neutral sugar with a small amount of protein (7.6%), and component sugar analysis also showed that DB-2-3IIc-2 was composed Ara, Gal, and GalA (molar ratio; 0.50:0.63:1.00). It may be suggested that activities of DB-2-3IIc-2 are resulted from pectic polysaccharides containing a polygalacturonan moiety with side chain of neutral sugars, such as Ara and Gal.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.120-128
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• 2003

Alternative medicines such as herbal products are increasingly being used for preventive and therapeutic purposes. Ginseng is the best known and most popular herbal medicine used worldwide. In spite of some beneficial effects of ginseng on the nervous system, little scientific evidence shows at the cellular level. In the present study, I have examined the direct modulation of ginseng total saponins and individual ginsenosides on the activation of $Ca^{2+}$ channels and NMDA-gated channels in cultured rat dorsal root ganglion (DRG) and hippocampal neurons, respectively. In DRG neurons, application of ginseng total saponins suppressed high-voltage-activated $Ca^{2+}$ channel currents and ginsenoside Rg$_3$, among the 11 ginsenosides tested, produced the strongest inhibition on $Ca^{2+}$ channel currents. Occlusion experiments using selective $Ca^{2+}$ channel blockers revealed that ginsenoside Rg$_3$ could modulate L-, N-, and P/Q-type currents. In addition, ginsenoside Rg$_3$ also proved to be an active component of ginseng actions on NMDA receptors in cultured hippocampal neurons. Application of ginsenoside Rg$_3$ suppressed NMDA-induced [Ca$^{2+}$]$_{i}$ increase and -gated channels using fura-2-based digital imaging and patch-clamp techniques, respectively. These results suggest that the modulation of $Ca^{2+}$ channels and NMDA receptors by ginsenoside Rg$_3$ could be part of the pharmacological basis of ginseng actions in the peripheral and central nervous systems.ous systems.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.433-440
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• 2020

The substantia gelatinosa (SG) of the trigeminal subnucleus caudalis (Vc) is the first relay site for the orofacial nociceptive inputs via the thin myelinated Aδ and unmyelinated C primary afferent fibers. Borneol, one of the valuable time-honored herbal ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine, is a popular treatment for anxiety, anesthesia, and antinociception. However, to date, little is known as to how borneol acts on the SG neurons of the Vc. To close this gap, the whole-cell patch-clamp technique was applied to elucidate the antinociceptive mechanism responding for the actions of borneol on the SG neurons of the Vc in mice. In the voltage-clamp mode, holding at -60 mV, the borneol-induced non-desensitizing inward currents were not affected by tetrodotoxin, a voltage-gated Na⁺ channel blocker, 6-cyano-7-nitro-quinoxaline-2,3-dione, a non-N-methyl-ᴅ-aspartate (NMDA) glutamate receptor antagonist and DL-2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid, an NMDA receptor antagonist. However, borneol-induced inward currents were partially decreased in the presence of picrotoxin, a γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)_A receptor antagonist, or strychnine, a glycine receptor antagonist, and was almost suppressed in the presence of picrotoxin and strychnine. Though borneol did not show any effect on the glycine-induced inward currents, borneol enhanced GABA-mediated responses. Beside, borneol enhanced the GABA-induced hyperpolarization under the current-clamp mode. Altogether, we suggest that borneol contributes in part toward mediating the inhibitory GABA and glycine transmission on the SG neurons of the Vc and may serve as an herbal therapeutic for orofacial pain ailments.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.641-649
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• 2012

To investigate scientific evidence for the use of a Korean Medicine (KM), the papers regarding Sipjeondabo-tang (Shiquandabu-tang) frequently used in Korean medical clinics and hospitals were collected and analyzed. The papers were classified as being from domestic or international journals and by the year of publication. The mechanisms of immuno-activity Sipjeondabo-tang (Shiquandabu-tang) were researched. Among 41 papers, 4 were published as Korean papers whereas 7 were as Chinese papers and 40 were as Japanese papers. Sipjeondabo-tang (Shiquandabu-tang) regulated the productions of Th1 cytokines such as interleukin-2 (IL-2) and interferon-${\gamma}$ (IFN-${\gamma}$), and Th2 cytokines such as IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-12 improving the function of immune organ including bone marrow, spleen, liver, thymus and peyer's patch. It also modulated the releases of immunoglobulin-G (IgG) and IgM. Thus, Sipjeondabo-tang (Shiquandabu-tang) balanced the Th1/Th2 immune responses as well as T/B cell. The regulation of immunoactivity could be speculated as an objective and scientific evidence of Sipjeondabo-tang (Shiquandabu-tang).

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.135-141
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• 2001

Of hot-water extracts prepared from 10 herbal components of Sip-Jeon-Dae-Bo-Tang, Atractylodes lancea DC. (ALR) and Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer (PG) showed the most potent bone marrow cell proliferation activity through intestinal immune system whereas other extracts did not have the activity except for Astragalus membranacues Bunge (ASR) and Angelica acutiloba Kitagawa (AR) having low activity. Especially, ALR had the potent activity irrespective of classes of ALR, a place of production and the condition of breeding. In addition, we found that hot-water extract from Atractylodes lancea DC rhizomes (ALR-0) contributed mainly to Peyer's patch cells mediated-hematopoietic response of Sip-Jeon-Dae-Bo-Tang. ALR-0 was further fractionated into MeOH-soluble fraction (ALR-1), MeOH-insoluble and EtOH-soluble fraction (ALR-2), and the crude polysaccharide fraction (ALR-3). Among these fractions, only ALR-3 showed potent stimulating activity for proliferation of bone marrow cells mediated by Peyer's patch cells, dose-dependently. In treatments of ALR-3 with $NaIO_4,\;NaClO_2$ and pronase, all significantly reduced the intestinal immune system modulating activity of ALR-3, and the activity of ALR-3 was much affected by $NaIO_4$ oxidation particularly. These results reveal that macromolecules, such as polysaccharide, rather than low-molecular-weight substances, are the potent intestinal immune system modulating compound of ALR.