Ginsentology Research Laboratory and Department of Physiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Bio/Molecular Informatics Center, Konkuk University, Seoul 143-701, Korea.
J Ginseng Res. 2011 Nov;35(4):471-8. doi: 10.5142/jgr.2011.35.4.471.
Ginseng, the root of Panax ginseng, is one of the oldest herbal medicines. It has a variety of physiological and pharmacological effects. Recently, we isolated a subset of glycolipoproteins that we designated gintonin, and demonstrated that it induced transient change in intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca(2+)]i) in cells via G-protein-coupled receptor signaling pathway(s). The previous method for gintonin isolation included multiple steps using methanol, butanol, and other organic solvents. In the present study, we developed a much simple method for the preparation of gintonin from ginseng root using 80% ethanol extraction. The extracted fraction was designated edible gintonin. This method produced a high yield of gintonin (0.20%). The chemical characteristics of gintonin such as molecular weight and the composition of the extract product were almost identical as the gintonin prepared using the previous extraction regimen involving various organic solvents. We also examined the physiological effects of edible gintonin on endogenous Ca(2+)-activated Cl(-) channel activity of Xenopus oocytes. The 50% effective dose was 1.03±0.3 μg/mL. Finally, since gintonin preparation through ethanol extraction is easily reproducible, gintonin could be commercially applied for ginseng-derived functional health food and/or drug following the confirmations of in vitro and in vivo physiological and pharmacological effects of gintonin.
人参是五加科植物人参的根，是最古老的草药之一。它具有多种生理和药理作用。最近，我们分离出一组糖脂蛋白，命名为 gintonin，并证实它通过 G 蛋白偶联受体信号通路诱导细胞内钙离子浓度([Ca(2+)]i)的瞬时变化。以前分离 gintonin 的方法包括使用甲醇、丁醇和其他有机溶剂的多个步骤。在本研究中，我们开发了一种从人参根中用 80%乙醇提取 gintonin 的简单方法。提取的部分被指定为可食用的 gintonin。该方法产生了高产量的 gintonin(0.20%)。gintonin 的化学特性，如分子量和提取物产品的组成，几乎与使用涉及各种有机溶剂的以前提取方案制备的 gintonin 相同。我们还研究了可食用 gintonin 对非洲爪蟾卵母细胞内源性 Ca(2+)-激活 Cl(-)通道活性的生理作用。50%有效剂量为 1.03±0.3 μg/mL。最后，由于通过乙醇提取制备 gintonin 易于重现，因此可以在确认 gintonin 的体外和体内生理和药理作用后，将其商业化应用于人参衍生的功能性保健品和/或药物。
