人参皂甙的活性综述

人参皂甙(Compound—K简称CK,20-O-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖基原人参二醇)是一种非天然的人参皂甙成分。它是天然二醇型人参皂甙如ginsenoside-Rb1、Rb2口服后在肠道中的代谢产物。目前国内外学者对CK的药理学活性进行了多方面的研究,主要集中在其抗肿瘤方面,发现它具有抗突变、抑制癌细胞转移、细胞毒、诱导细胞凋亡、逆转药物耐药和抗肿瘤诱导的血管新生等多种药理活性,现就此作综述。     

人参皂甙药理作用研究进展

人参是我国传统名贵中草药,皂甙为其主要活性成分。近年对人参皂甙的研究进展及成果颇多,揭示了其在抗肿瘤、抗衰老、增加免疫、防治心血管疾病等方面的作用,本文将以近年来国内外研究人参皂苷的报道为基础,对其药理作用等研究进展进行综述,为进一步深入研究人参皂苷类药物提供思路。     

人参皂甙Rh2抗肿瘤作用的研究

作为中国传统中药的人参在中药史中占有重要的地位 ,被用于多种古方验方的主药。其主要成分人参皂甙具有多种药理作用 ,其中二醇组皂甙Rh2 为从人参中提取的天然活性成分 ,经现代医学研究证明具有很高的抗肿瘤活性 ,对肿瘤细胞具有分化诱导、增殖抑制、诱导细胞凋亡等作用。     

人参皂甙Rb3对大鼠海马神经细胞谷氨酸损伤作用及相关机制的研究

目的：利用原代培养的海马神经细胞,研究人参皂甙Rb3对谷氨酸兴奋性神经毒性的保护作用及有关机制。方法：采用原代培养的胚胎大鼠海马神经细胞谷氨酸毒性模型,观察人参皂甙Rb3对神经细胞形态、神经细胞活性、细胞外液中乳酸脱氢酶（lactate dehydrogenase,LDH）的漏出率及总一氧化氮合酶（nitrogen oxide synthase,NOS）、结构型N0s、诱导型NOS活性等的影响。结果：人参皂甙Rb3对神经细胞的谷氨酸毒性损伤具有保护作用。使细胞形态保持完整,活力增加,细胞膜损伤减轻;而且人参皂甙Rb3能增加神经细胞的结构型NOS活性。降低诱导型NOS的活性。结论：人参皂甙Rb,具有抗谷氨酸兴奋性毒性作用,其作用机制可能与降低诱导型NOS活性。增加结构型NOS的活性有关。     

天然甾体皂甙化合物的抗肿瘤活性

采用MTT法,以长春新碱(VCR)为阳性对照,研究了6种从菝葜属植物中分离提取的天然甾体皂甙化合物对肝癌SMMC-7721、人宫颈癌HeLa和胃腺癌MGc80-3细胞生长的抑制作用.结果显示;6种甾体皂甙抗肿瘤活性与其化学结构密切相关,对三种癌细胞的抑瘤作用强度相同,抑癌活性的顺序为:薯蓣皂甙>VCR>SQD_4>SQD_3>M_1>SQD_1,甲基原薯蓣皂甙.甾体骨架的差异性是决定这类化合物抗肿瘤活性的主要因素.     

质膜NADPH氧化酶的活化与H2O2的产生介导内源激发子诱导人参悬浮细胞中PAL活性的提高与人参皂甙的积累

利用纤维素酶降解人参(Panax ginseng C．A．Meyer)悬浮细胞的细胞壁制备了内源激发子(CDW)。CDW体外诱导了游离人参细胞质膜NADPH氧化酶的活性,激发了活体人参悬浮细胞产生H2O2。CDW还可以诱导提高苯丙氨酸解氨酶(PAL)活性,促进人参鲨烯环氧酶基因(sqe)的转录与人参皂甙的积累。NADPH氧化酶的抑制剂不仅可以抑制CDW体外诱导的质膜NADPH活性而且还可以抑制CDW诱导人参细胞产生H2O2。进而,这些抑制剂还可以抑制CDW诱导PAL活性的提高,以及sqe的转录与人参皂甙的合成。过氧化氢酶与H2O2的粹灭剂也可以抑制CDW激发产生的这些诱导效应。上述结果表明CDW激发质膜NADPH氧化酶的活化与H2O2的产生在介导CDW诱导人参细胞抗性反应中,包括PAL活性的提高与人参皂甙的积累,起了重要的信号转导作用。     

入参培养细胞多糖研究

多糖是一切生命机体必不可少的成分,具有多种生物功能,特别是由于其与生物体免疫系统调节有关,故对多糖韵研究日益受到重视。对我国中医扶正固本的首选药物人参中的人参多糖研究已有诸多报道,一致认为人参多糖有较强的药理活性。如刺激免疫功能,治疗肝炎、降低转氨酶、抗肿瘤等,并且已有从人参中提取粗多糖并经纯化精制而成的人参多糖产品,如人参多糖注射液已在临床上使用。但对人参培养细胞中的人参多糖的研究报道甚少。近年来,中国药科大学植物组织培养研究室在进行人参细胞大量培养研究时,除进行人参皂甙的提取、分     

质膜NADPH氧化酶的活化与H2O2的产生介导内源激发子诱导人参悬浮细胞中PAL活性的提高与人参皂甙的积累

利用纤维素酶降解人参(Panax ginseng C.A.Meyer)悬浮细胞的细胞壁制备了内源激发子(CDW).CDW体外诱导了游离人参细胞质膜NADPH氧化酶的活性,激发了活体人参悬浮细胞产生H2O2.CDW还可以诱导提高苯丙氨酸解氨酶(PAL)活性,促进人参鲨烯环氧酶基因(sqe)的转录与人参皂甙的积累.NADPH氧化酶的抑制剂不仅可以抑制CDW体外诱导的质膜NADPH活性而且还可以抑制CDW诱导人参细胞产生H2O2.进而,这些抑制剂还可以抑制CDW诱导PAL活性的提高,以及sqe的转录与人参皂甙的合成.过氧化氢酶与H2O2的粹灭剂也可以抑制CDW激发产生的这些诱导效应.上述结果表明CDW激发质膜NADPH氧化酶的活化与H2O2的产生在介导CDW诱导人参细胞抗性反应中,包括PAL活性的提高与人参皂甙的积累,起了重要的信号转导作用.     

人参皂苷Rg3药代动力学及抗肿瘤作用的研究进展

人参皂苷Rg3是存在于天然药物人参中的一种四环三萜皂苷,研究表明人参皂苷Rg3具有确切的抗肿瘤活性,在诱导肿瘤细胞凋亡、抑制肿瘤细胞增殖、增强免疫功能等方面具有显著作用。本文通过查阅近年来相关文献,概括人参皂苷Rg3药效学及药代动力学研究进展,探讨人参皂苷Rg3抗肿瘤的作用机理以及体内吸收、分布、代谢、排泄规律,并在此基础上结合现代中药理论对今后人参皂苷Rg3的研究方向进行了展望。     

云南栽培西洋参皂甙的高压液相色谱定量分析

采用N-18ODS柱,以CH_3CN:H_2O(31:69 v/v)中加入50mM KH_2PO_4和CH_3CN:H_2O:H_3PO_4(20:80:0.5 v/v)为流动相,在202 nm紫外吸收波长检测下,测定了云南丽江引种栽培的西洋参中丙二酸人参皂甙(malonyl ginsenoside)Rb_1、Rb_2、Rc、人参皂甙(ginsenosidc)Rb_1、Rb_2、Rc、Rd、Ro和Rc、Rgl等10种主要皂甙的含量,讨论了不同的栽培年代、采收季节、地下部位以及商品等级中皂甙含量的变化,对该地区西洋参的生产提出了建议。     

人参的遗传改良*

遗传改良是人参育种的重要手段之一,而遗传转化和再生体系的建立是开展人参遗传改良工作的前提和基础。人参植株再生可以通过器官发生和体细胞胚发生,间接体细胞胚发生是人参植株再生的主要途径,从不同外植体,不同碳源,体细胞胚优化和无激素再生等方面进行了综述。在人参遗传转化方面,发根农杆菌和根癌农杆菌对人参的遗传转化均已成功,人参皂苷合成途径中的关键酶基因和抗除草剂基因也已陆续导入人参,得到了遗传改良的转化人参。发根培养系统可用于大量生产人参皂苷,讨论了rolC基因对人参发根诱导的作用,发根植株再生能力及生物反应器培养,最后指出了人参基因工程研究中存在的问题。     

Generation of ginsenosides Rg3 and Rh2 from North American ginseng

Rg3 and Rh2 ginsenosides are primarily found in Korean red ginseng root (Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer) and valued for their bioactive properties. We quantified both Rh2 and Rg3 ginseng leaf and Rg3 from root extracts derived from North American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius). Quantification was obtained by application of HPLC with ion fragments detected using ESI-MS. Ginseng leaf contained 11.3+/-0.5 mg/g Rh2 and 7.5+/-0.9 mg/g Rg3 in concentrated extracts compared to 10.6+/-0.4 mg/g Rg3 in ginseng root. No detectable Rh2 was found in root extracts by HPLC, although it was detectable by ESI-MS analysis. Ginsenosides Rg3 and Rh2 were detected following hot water reflux extraction, but not from tissues extracted with 80% aqueous ethanol at room temperature. Therefore ginsenosides Rg3 and Rh2 are not naturally present in North American ginseng, but are products of a thermal process. Using ESI-MS analysis, it was found that formation of Rg3 and Rh2, among other compounds, were a function of heating time and were breakdown products of the more abundant ginsenosides Rb1 and Rc. Our findings that heat processed North American ginseng leaf is an excellent source of Rh2 ginsenoside is an important discovery considering that ginseng leaf material is obtainable throughout the entire plant cycle for recovery of valuable ginsenosides for pharmaceutical use.     

Ginseng and obesity: observations and understanding in cultured cells,animals and humans

Ginseng, a traditional medical herb, has been reported having beneficial effects in fatigue, heart diseases, diabetes, immune function and erectile dysfunction. In recent years, increasing investigations have been conducted on ginseng in preventing and treating of obesity, one of the major worldwide escalating public health concerns. However, the effect and the relevant mechanisms behind how ginseng works as an antiobesity treatment are still controversial. In this review, we briefly discussed the chemical structures, metabolism and pharmacokinetics of ginseng and its major bioactive components ginsenosides. The major focus is on the antiobesity effects and the physiological, cellular and molecular mechanisms of ginseng and its ginsenosides in cultured cells, animal models and humans. We particularly compared the ginsenosides profiles, the antiobesity effects and the mechanisms between Asian ginseng (Panax ginseng) and American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius), the two major ginseng species having opposite medical effects in traditional Chinese medicine. Our unpublished data on the ginseng antiobesity in cultured cells and mice were also included. We further addressed the current problems and future directions of the ginseng antiobesity research.     

Effects of ginsenoside Rg2 on the 5-HT3A receptor-mediated ion current in Xenopus oocytes

Treatment with ginsenosides, major active ingredients of Panax ginseng, produces a variety of pharmacological or physiological responses with effects on the central and peripheral nervous systems. Recent reports showed that ginsenoside Rg2 inhibits nicotinic acetylcholine receptor-mediated Na+ influx and channel activity. In the present study, we investigated the effect of ginsenoside Rg2 on human 5-hydroxytryptamine3A (5-HT3A) receptor channel activity, which is also one of the ligand-gated ion channel families. The 5-HT3A receptor was expressed in Xenopus oocytes, and the current was measured using the two-electrode voltage clamp technique. The ginsenoside Rg2 itself had no effect on the oocytes that were injected with H2O as well as on the oocytes that were injected with the 5-HT3A receptor cRNA. In the oocytes that were injected with the 5-HT3A receptor cRNA, the pretreatment of ginsenoside Rg2 inhibited the 5-HT-induced inward peak current (I5-HT) The inhibitory effect of ginsenoside Rg2 on I5-HT was dose dependent and reversible. The half-inhibitory concentrations (IC50) of ginsenoside Rg2 was 22.3 +/- 4.6 microM. The inhibition of I5-HT by ginsenoside Rg2 was non-competitive and voltage-independent. These results indicate that ginsenoside Rg2 might regulate the 5-HT3A receptors that are expressed in Xenopus oocytes. Further, this regulation on the ligand-gated ion channel activity by ginsenosides might be one of the pharmacological actions of Panax ginseng.     

Fungal sensitivity to and enzymatic deglycosylation of ginsenosides

A ginseng pathogen, Cylindrocarpon destructans, and five nonpathogens were tested for their sensitivity to a total ginsenoside fraction (T-GF), a protopanaxadiol-type ginsenoside fraction (PPD-GF) and a protopanaxatriol-type ginsenoside fraction (PPT-GF) from the roots of Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer. The results showed that T-GF inhibited growth of the five ginseng nonpathogens, while it promoted growth of the ginseng pathogen C. destructans. PPT-GF and PPD-GF both inhibited the growth of the five ginseng nonpathogens, although the activity of PPT-GF was higher than that of PPD-GF. PPT-GF and PPD-GF exhibited different activities on C. destructans: PPT-GF inhibited its growth, whereas PPD-GF significantly enhanced its growth. The subsequent analysis of enzymatic degradation of ginsenosides by the test fungi showed that C. destructans can consecutively hydrolyze the terminal monosaccharide units from the sugar chains attached at C3 and C20 in PPD-type ginsenosides by extracellular glycosidase activity to yield four major products, gypenoside XVII (G-XVII), compound O, compound Mb and the ginsenoside F₂. By contrast, the ginseng nonpathogens Aspergillus nidulans and Cladosporium fulvum have no extracellular glycosidase activity toward sugar chains attached to C3 in PPD-type ginsenosides. These results indicated that ginsenosides might act as host chemical defenses, while the ginseng root pathogenic fungi might counter their toxicity by converting PPD-type ginsenosides into growth or host recognition factors. The ability of ginseng root pathogens to deglycosylate PPD-type ginsenosides may be a pathogenicity factor.     

Effects of ginsenosides on glycine receptor alpha1 channels expressed in Xenopus oocytes

Ginsenosides, major active ingredients of Panax ginseng, are known to regulate the excitatory ligand-gated ion channel activity. Recent reports showed that ginsenosides attenuate nicotinic acetylcholine and NMDA receptor channel activity. However, it is not known whether ginsenosides also affect the inhibitory ligand-gated ion channel activity. We investigated the effect of ginsenosides on human glycine alpha1 receptor channel activity expressed in Xenopus oocytes using a two-electrode voltage clamp technique. Treatment of ginsenoside Rf enhances glycine-induced inward peak current (IGly) with dose dependent and reversible manner but ginsenoside Rf itself did not elicit membrane currents. The half-stimulatory concentrations (EC50) of ginsenoside Rf was 49.8 +/- 8.9 microM. Glycine receptor antagonist strychnine completely blocked the inward current elicited by glycine plus ginsenoside Rf. Cl- channel blocker 4,4'-disothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid (DIDS) also blocked the inward current elicited by glycine plus ginsenoside Rf. We also tested the effect of eight individual ginsenosides (i.e., Rb1, Rb2, Rc, Rd, Re, Rg1, Rg2, and Ro) in addition to ginsenoside Rf. We found that five of them significantly enhanced the inward current induced by glycine with the following order of potency: Rb1 > Rb2 > Rg2 > or = Rc > Rf > Rg1 > Re. These results indicate that ginsenosides might regulate gylcine receptor expressed in Xenopus oocytes and this regulation might be one of the pharmacological actions of Panax ginseng.     

Molecular docking studies of anti-apoptotic BCL-2, BCL-XL, and MCL-1 proteins with ginsenosides from Panax ginseng

Anti-apoptotic proteins such as BCL-2, BCL-XL and MCL-1 bind with pro-apoptotic proteins to induce apoptosis mechanism. BCL-2 family proteins are key regulators of apoptosis process. Over expression of these anti-apoptotic proteins lead to several cancers by preventing apoptosis. A number of studies revealed that ginseng derivatives reduce tumor growth. Ginseng, the most valuable medicinal herb found in eastern Asia belongs to Araliaceae family. In this study, docking simulations were performed for anti-apoptotic proteins with several ginsenosides from Panax ginseng. Our finding shows ginsenosides Rf, Rg1, Rg3 and Rh2 have more binding affinity with BCL-2, BCL-XL and MCL-1 and other ginsenosides also interact with each anti-apoptotic proteins. Therefore, ginseng derivatives represent a novel class of potent inhibitors and could be used for cancer chemotherapy.     

Simultaneous determination of ginsenosides in Panax ginseng with different growth ages using high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry

The contents of ginsenosides in Panax ginseng not only vary in different parts of the root, but also exhibit yearly variation. In this study, an HPLC-MS method was established in order to simultaneously analyse ginsenosides Rb1, Rb2, Rb3, Rc, Rd, Re, Rf, Rg1 and Rg2. The concentration of ginsenosides in the tap root and root fibre were compared and the yearly variations of nine ginsenosides elucidated. The results indicate that the total content of ginsenosides in the main root and the root fibre both attain a maximum level in the fourth year of growth, although the amount in the former is much higher than in the latter. The variation in the content of ginsenosides during a 2-6 year period suggests that cultivated P. Ginseng can be harvested after the fourth year. The current results will provide useful information for the quality control and good agricultural practice farming of ginseng.     

Determination of major ginsenosides in Panax quinquefolius (American ginseng) using high-performance liquid chromatography

In order to determine the active ingredients in root extracts of Panax quinquefolius (American ginseng), a gradient HPLC method involving UV photodiode array detection was applied to separate and quantify simultaneously the ginsenosides Rb1, Rb2, Rc, Rd, Re, Rf and Rg1. All ginseng saponins were baseline-resolved under the selected conditions, and the detection limits were 1.0 microg/mL or less. The method has been applied to analyse ginsenosides extracted from American ginseng cultivated in both Wisconsin and Illinois. Ginsenosides Re and Rb1 were the two main ginseng saponins in the root. The amounts of Re in 5- and 7-year Illinois-cultivated samples were greater than those found in ginseng cultivated for 3 or 4 years in Wisconsin, whereas the levels of Rb1 were greater in the younger Wisconsin samples.