• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• 제48권1호
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• pp.1-11
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• 2024

Fresh ginseng is prone to spoilage due to its high moisture content. For long-term storage, most fresh ginsengs are dried to white ginseng (WG) or steamed for hours at high temperature/pressure and dried to form Korean Red ginseng (KRG). They are further processed for ginseng products when subjected to hot water extraction/concentration under pressure. These WG or KRG preparation processes affect ginsenoside compositions and also other ginseng components, probably during treatments like steaming and drying, to form diverse bioactive phospholipids. It is known that ginseng contains high amounts of gintonin lysophosphatidic acids (LPAs). LPAs are simple lipid-derived growth factors in animals and humans and act as exogenous ligands of six GTP-binding-protein coupled LPA receptor subtypes. LPAs play diverse roles ranging from brain development to hair growth in animals and humans. LPA-mediated signaling pathways involve various GTP-binding proteins to regulate downstream pathways like [Ca²⁺]_i transient induction. Recent studies have shown that gintonin exhibits anti-Alzheimer's disease and antiarthritis effects in vitro and in vivo mediated by gintonin LPAs, the active ingredients of gintonin, a ginseng-derived neurotrophin. However, little is known about how gintonin LPAs are formed in high amounts in ginseng compared to other herbs. This review introduces atypical or non-enzymatic pathways under the conversion of ginseng phospholipids into gintonin LPAs during steaming and extraction/concentration processes, which exert beneficial effects against degenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease and arthritis in animals and humans via LPA receptors.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• 제28권2호
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• pp.94-103
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• 2004

본 연구 결과를 통하여 홍삼 성분인 고려홍삼 사포닌을 반복 투여시 흰쥐 해마 SGZ 부위의 신경전구세포 생성이 유의하게 증가되었으며, 이와 같은 경향은 반복 스트레스에 노출되어도 유지되었다. 또한 스트레스를 가하지 않은 흰쥐에서 고려홍삼 사포닌 반복 투여시 해마 CA3와 CA1 부위에서 BDNF mRNA의 발현이 증가되었으나, 반복 스트레스를 가한 흰쥐의 CA3와 CA1부위에서 BDNF mRNA의 감소를 차단하지는 못하였다. 따라서 고려홍삼 사포닌 반복 처치에 의한 해마 신경전구세포의 생성에 BDNF 보다는 다른 요인이 관여할 가능성이 클 것으로 추정된다.