1.Neuroprotective Effect of Ginsenoside Rd on Spinal Cord Injury Rats.
Cong L1, Chen W2. Basic Clin Pharmacol Toxicol. 2016 Feb 2. doi: 10.1111/bcpt.12562. [Epub ahead of print]
In the present study, the neuroprotective effects of ginsenoside Rd (GS Rd) were evaluated in a rat model of spinal cord injury (SCI). Rats in SCI groups received a T8 laminectomy and a spinal contusion injury. GS Rd 12.5, 25 and 50 mg/kg were administered intraperitoneally one hour before the surgery and once daily for 14 days. Dexamethasone 1 mg/kg was administered as a positive control. Locomotor function was evaluated using the BBB score system. H&E and Nissl staining were performed to observe the histological changes of the spinal cord. Levels of MDA and GSH and activity of SOD were assessed to reflect the oxidative stress state. The production of TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-1were assessed using ELISA kits to examine the inflammatory responses in the spinal cord. TUNEL staining was used to detect the cell apoptosis in the spinal cord. Western blot analysis was used to examine the expression of apoptotic-associated proteins and MAPK proteins.
2.Whole-cell biocatalysis for producing ginsenoside Rd from Rb1 using Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG.
Ku S1,2, You HJ1, Park MS3, Ji GE1,3,4. J Microbiol Biotechnol. 2016 Mar 24. doi: 10.4014/jmb.1601.01002. [Epub ahead of print]
Ginsenosides are the major active ingredients in ginseng used for human therapeutic plant medicines. One of the most well-known probiotic bacteria among the various strains on the functional food market is Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG. Biocatalytic methods using probiotic enzymes for producing deglycosylated ginsenosides such as Rd have a growing significance in the functional food industry. The addition of 2% cellobiose (w/v) to glucose-free de Man Rogosa Sharpe broths notably induced β-glucosidase production from L. rhamnosus GG. Enzyme production and activity was optimized at a pH, temperature, and cellobiose concentration of 6.0, 40°C and 2% (w/v), respectively. Under these controlled conditions, β-glucosidase production in L. rhamnosus GG was enhanced by 25 fold. Additionally, whole-cell homogenates showed the highest β-glucosidase activity when compared to disrupted cell suspensions; the cell disruption step significantly decreased the β-glucosidase activity.
3.Ginsenoside Rd and ischemic stroke; a short review of literatures.
Nabavi SF1, Sureda A2, Habtemariam S3, Nabavi SM1. J Ginseng Res. 2015 Oct;39(4):299-303. doi: 10.1016/j.jgr.2015.02.002. Epub 2015 Feb 23.
Panax ginseng is a well-known economic medical plant that is widely used in Chinese traditional medicine. This species contains a unique class of natural products-ginsenosides. Recent clinical and experimental studies have presented numerous lines of evidence on the promising role of ginsenosides on different diseases including neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and certain types of cancer. Nowadays, most of the attention has focused on ginsenoside Rd as a neuroprotective agent to attenuate ischemic stroke damages. Some of the evidence showed that ginsenoside Rd ameliorates ischemic stroke-induced damages through the suppression of oxidative stress and inflammation. Ginsenoside Rd can prolong neural cells' survival through the upregulation of the endogenous antioxidant system, phosphoinositide-3-kinase/AKT and extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase 1/2 pathways, preservation of mitochondrial membrane potential, suppression of the nuclear factor-kappa B, transient receptor potential melastatin, acid sensing ion channels 1a, poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1, protein tyrosine kinase activation, as well as reduction of cytochrome c-releasing and apoptosis-inducing factor.
4.Distributive and Quantitative Analysis of the Main Active Saponins in Panax notoginseng by UHPLC-QTOF/MS Combining with Fluorescence Microscopy and Laser Microdissection.
Chen Q1, Liang Z1, Brand E1, Chen H1, Zhao Z1. Planta Med. 2016 Feb;82(3):263-72. doi: 10.1055/s-0035-1558311. Epub 2016 Jan 29.
The distribution of the secondary metabolites in different tissues of Panax notoginseng has not yet been investigated. Furthermore, there is no scientific evidence available for the quality assessment of P. notoginseng. This is the first study on the tissue-specific chemicals to identify and determinate the main secondary metabolite profiling of P. notoginseng in order to provide more information for quality evaluation. In this study, the ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry approach combined with fluorescence microscopy and laser microdissection was developed and validated for distributive and quantitative analyses of the main active saponins of different tissues from P. notoginseng. The results showed that the total content of notoginsenoside R1, ginsenoside Rg1, ginsenoside Rb1, and ginsenoside Rd in the xylem were higher than those in the cork, phloem, and cortex. There was no significant difference in the distribution of saponins between the main roots and the branch roots of the fresh unprocessed materials, nor was there a significant difference in their distribution between the main roots from the fresh unprocessed vs.