• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.74-82
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• 2020

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive and most frequently diagnosed neurodegenerative disorder. However, there is still no drug preventing the progress of this disorder. β-Amyrin, an ingredient of the surface wax of tomato fruit and dandelion coffee, is previously reported to ameliorate memory impairment induced by cholinergic dysfunction. Therefore, we tested whether β-amyrin can prevent AD-like pathology. β-Amyrin blocked amyloid β (Aβ)-induced long-term potentiation (LTP) impairment in the hippocampal slices. Moreover, β-amyrin improved Aβ-induced suppression of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt signaling. LY294002, a PI3K inhibitor, blocked the effect of β-amyrin on Aβ-induced LTP impairment. In in vivo experiments, we observed that β-amyrin ameliorated object recognition memory deficit in Aβ-injected AD mice model. Moreover, neurogenesis impairments induced by Aβ was improved by β-amyrin treatment. Taken together, β-amyrin might be a good candidate of treatment or supplement for AD patients.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.291-295
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• 2018

Background: The use of Rehmannia glutinosa of the family Scrophulariaceae, in traditional medicine is well known. This study was conducted to elucidate the effect of air curing of the seed rhizome of R. glutinosa on its storability and yield. Methods and Results: The root of the R. glutinosa cultivar (Dagang) was harvested in at the end of November. The seed rhizomes were air cured for one to seven days. They were subsequently wrapped with newspaper and further stored in a plastic container at $1^{\circ}C$. It was observed that the weight loss and decay rates were significantly lower in the air cured seeds than in the untreated ones. Moreover, the decay rate of the control was approximately 50%, 120 days after storage. However. the decay rate of all the air cured treatment groups was less than 1%. Additionally, air curing led to an increase in the germination rate of the seeds and the root yield when compared with the untreated groups. Taken together, the ideal treatment period for air curing was found to be 3 days. Under these conditions, the germination rate and yield were 88.7% and 2,185 ㎏/10a, respectively. Conclusions: This study successfully demonstrated that the air curing of seed rhizomes can lead to a considerable increase in the storability and yield of R. glutinosa.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.433-437
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• 2016

Consumption of high doses of ethanol can lead to amnesia, which often manifests as a blackout. These blackouts experienced by ethanol consumers may be a major cause of the social problems associated with excess ethanol consumption. However, there is currently no established treatment for preventing these ethanol-induced blackouts. In this study, we tested the ethanol extract of the roots of Salvia miltiorrhiza (SM) for its ability to mitigate ethanol-induced behavioral and synaptic deficits. To test behavioral deficits, an object recognition test was conducted in mouse. In this test, ethanol (1 g/kg, i.p.) impaired object recognition memory, but SM (200 mg/kg) prevented this impairment. To evaluate synaptic deficits, NMDA receptor-mediated excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) and long-term potentiation (LTP) in the mouse hippocampal slices were tested, as they are known to be vulnerable to ethanol and are associated with ethanol-induced amnesia. SM (10 and $100{\mu}g/ml$) significantly ameliorated ethanol-induced long-term potentiation and NMDA receptor-mediated EPSP deficits in the hippocampal slices. Therefore, these results suggest that SM prevents ethanol-induced amnesia by protecting the hippocampus from NMDA receptor-mediated synaptic transmission and synaptic plasticity deficits induced by ethanol.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.247-253
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• 2006

The antitumor activity of crude saponin mixture obtained from Luffa tuberosa (Roxb.) (Fam; Cucurbitaceae) hairy roots (CSLT) in mice transplanted with Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC) was investigated. The EAC-bearing mice receiving 150 and $300{\mu}g/kg$ body weight, (i.p) of CSLT have shown a dose dependent elevation in tumor-tree survival and a highest number of survivors were observed after administration of CSLT $(300{\mu}g/kg)$, which was considered as an optimum dose for its antineoplastic action. The mean survival time (MST) for this dose was approximately $47.1{\pm}0.74d$, when compared with $19.0{\pm}0.36d$ of untreated control. Administration of $300{\mu}g/kg$ CSLT resulted in 130% long-term increased survival time. The measurement of body weight, tumor volume, packed cell volume, viable and non-viable count indicated the efficacy of CSLT in tumor-bearing mice, there was a significant recovery in hematological profiles, and there was depletion in lipid peroxidation levels, and the antioxidant enzyme activities such as GSH, SOD and CAT were restored to near the normal levels. The CSLT was found to be devoid of conspicuous short-term toxicity in the mice when animals were intraperitoneally injected with 250, 500, 750 and $1000{\mu}g/kg$ bodyweight. The treated mice showed conspicuous toxic symptoms only at a dose of $1500{\mu}g/kg$. Mortality of the animals was monitored up to 14 d post drug treatment, $1/7^{th}$ of the $LD_{50}$ dose has been considered for the optimal antineoplastic activity.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.124-142
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• 2017

Objectives: This study aimed to learn what should be considered in [Guideline of Clinical Trial with Herbal Medicinal Product for Gastric Cancer)] by analyzing the existing guidelines and clinical trials. Methods: The development committee searched guidelines for herbal medicinal product or gastric cancer developed already. Then, clinical trials for gastric cancer using herbal medicine were searched. The searched trials were analyzed in terms of inclusion and exclusion of participants, intervention, comparator, outcomes and trial design. Then, we compared the results of analysis with the regulations and guidelines of Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to suggest the issue that we will have to consider when making the [Guideline of Clinical Trial with Herbal Medicinal Product for Gastric Cancer]. Results: As a result, few guidelines for anti-tumor agent and clinical trial with herbal medicinal product were searched in the national institution homepage. In addition, 10 articles were searched by using the combination following search term; 'stomach neoplasm', 'herbal medicine', 'Medicine, Korean traditional', 'Medicine, Chinese Traditional', 'TCM', 'TKM', 'trial'. Most trials included gastric cancer participants with medical history of operation. The type of intervention was various such as decoction, granules, and fluid of intravenous injection. Comparators were diverse such as placebo, conventional treatment including chemotherapy and nutritional supplement. The most frequently used outcome for efficacy was quality of life. Besides, the symptom score, tumor response, and survival rate were used. Safety was investigated by recording adverse events. Conclusion: We found out some issue by reviewing the existing guidelines and comparing it with clinical trials for gastric cancer and herbal medicinal products. These results will be utilized for developing [Guideline of Clinical Trial with Herbal Medicinal Product for Gastric Cancer].

• Journal of Oriental Neuropsychiatry
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.283-295
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• 2009

Objectives : Parkinson's disease is a chronic neuron-degenerative disease. The medication of dopamine, one of the most common treatment for the disease, has effects of improving the symptom, but when taken for a long term, the medicine brings about side-effects such as the phenomenon of medicinal efficacy disappearance and dyskinesia. In addition, it doesn't have any effects in slowing down or stopping the development of Parkinson's disease. Methods : Accordingly, this study aims to investigate the clinical cases to stop or improve the development of Parkinson's disease by carrying out an independent treatment with Oriental medicine and a combined treatment with Western and Oriental medicines respectively for over 6 months. Results and Conclusions : The results of the study is expected to be an important precedent for the treatment of neuron-degenerative diseases of cranial nerve including Parkinson's disease in the future.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.362-366
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• 2013

We are building an Korean Medicine ontology and disassembling indication terms of medicinal materials and formulas. When we disassemble these terms, an expert can disagree about another expert's result, so participants have to consider another opinion and verify each other concurrently. To achieve this, we have developed a web-based tool that support users in refining terms, disassembling them into the minimum meaning efficiently. With this tool, plural participants refer to each other and make use of this as a verification method. This would have enabled participants to achieve consensus. Due to the nature of the traditional Korean Medicine knowledge which have rich implications and is complicated,E there would be a various result of refinement, disassembly, analysis and another processing. This tool assists users in minimizing the differences and maintaining objectivity by agreement. We have refined and analyzed 4,756 terms from materials and formulas indication in Korean Medicine ontology using this tool. And we concluded that disassembled data increases the percentage of linkage between diseases and medicinal treatments and established an infrastructure for the extensible knowledge.

• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.122-137
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• 2018

Objectives: This study is to review the effect of Korean medicinal herbs on treatment of polycystic ovary induced rat models reported in domestic & foreign journals. Methods: 7 electronic databases (Pubmed, CNKI, EMBASE, Oasis, RISS, CENTRAL, Koreankt) were searched with term as polycystic ovary, and study reports on polycystic ovary impairment with Korean medicinal herbs. After selecting several studies, the analysis was focused on items reflected in the Rotterdam criteria for diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome such as hyperandrogenism (HA), ovarian weight, the number of follicle cysts, estrous cycles, and etc. Results: 15 studies were reviewed. As a polycystic ovary induction material, estradiol valerate (EV) was used in 9 studies, testosterone propionate (TP) in 2 studies and dihydrotestosterone (DHT), dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), Poretsky's method and letrozole (LE) was used in rest 4 studies, respectively. Tribulus terrestris (TT), Nardostachys jatamansi (NJ), Lycii cortex (LC), Cinnamomum cassia kees (CCK) and Atractylodis macrocephalae koidz (AMK) produced statistically significant results related to hyperandrogenism. In ovarian weight, Silybum marianum (SM), AMK and Alllium sativum (AS) were statistically significant. In the the number of follicle cysts, SM and TT were statistically significant. In estrous cycles, AMK, NJ, TT and Coix lacryma-jobi (CL) were statistically significant. Conclusions: Based on the diagnosis criteria of Rotterdam, TT, NJ, AMK, SM, AS, and CL produced statistically significant results in rat model.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.129-135
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• 2012

The feature of asthma are airway inflammation (AI), reversible airway obstruction, and an increased sensitivity to bronchoconstricting agents, elevated airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR), excess production of Th2 cytokines, and eosinophil accumulation in the lungs. This study was performed to investigate if oral administration of $Scutellaria$ $baicalensis$ Georgi water extracts (SBG) have the antiasthmatic potential for the treatment of asthma. Asthmatic HI and AHR were induced by systemic sensitization to ovalbumin (OVA) with intratracheal instillation with 0.1 mg/mL of diesel exhaust particles (DEP) suspension once a week for 10 weeks in BALB/c mice. SBG was orally administered with the concentraion of 200 mg/kg 5 days a week for 10 weeks. Long-term SBG treatment suppressed the eosinophil infiltration into airways from blood, the asthmatic AI and AHR by attenuating the production of cytokine IL-4, IL-5 and IL-13, histamine and OVA-specific IgE. Our data suggest that SBG has inhibitory effects on AI and AHR in a mouse model of asthma, may act as a potential Th2 cytokine antagonist, and may have a therapeutic effect on allergic asthma.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.701-708
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• 2013

To test the quality change of seedlings of three domestic medicinal plants raised in plug trays, a short term storage experiment was conducted. Seedlings were kept in growth chambers for two weeks at 4 or $8^{\circ}C$ temperature combined with 0 or $5{\mu}mol{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ PPFD. Quality of glasshouse-raised seedlings was assessed after two weeks of cold storage in the growth chamber and one week of acclimation in the greenhouse. After two weeks of storage in the growth chamber of Perilla frutescens var. acuta Kudo, plant height was the greatest in the treatment $8^{\circ}C$ combined with $0{\mu}mol{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ PPFD. Internode length of P. frutescens var. acuta Kudo was the greatest in the treatment of $4^{\circ}C$ combined with $0{\mu}mol{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ PPFD. After one week of acclimatization in a glasshouse, the growth and development, such as plant height, internode length and leaf size, were greater in the $8^{\circ}C$ combined with $5{\mu}mol{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ PPFD than in the other treatments. After two weeks of storage in the growth chamber of Sophora tonkinensis, plant height increased more in the treatment of $4^{\circ}C$ than $8^{\circ}C$. After one week of acclimatization in a glasshouse, number of leaves did not change in the treatment of $4^{\circ}C$ combined with $0{\mu}mol{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ PPFD, but it increased in the other treatments. Leaf width increased more under the dark than light condition. Leaf length did not observably change in any treatments. After two weeks of storage in the growth chamber, plant height of Angelica gigas Nakai was the greatest in the treatment of $8^{\circ}C$. Number of leaves was the greatest in the treatment of $8^{\circ}C$. Leaf growth was greater under dark than light condition. These results suggested that optimal storage environment was $8^{\circ}C$ combined with $5{\mu}mol{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ PPFD for P. frutescens var. acuta Kudo, and $4^{\circ}C$ combined with $0{\mu}mol{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ PPFD for S. tonkinensis and A. gigas Nakai. Hence, proper combination of temperature and PPFD were necessary for better storage, and acclimatization and growth, thereafter, of the plug seedlings of theses plant species.