Department of Rehabilitation Medicine of Korean Medicine, Dongguk University, Gyeongju, Korea.
Chunlab Inc., Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea.
J Ginseng Res. 2014 Apr;38(2):106-15. doi: 10.1016/j.jgr.2013.12.004. Epub 2014 Jan 9.
Gut microbiota is regarded as one of the major factors involved in the control of body weight. The antiobesity effects of ginseng and its main constituents have been demonstrated, but the effects on gut microbiota are still unknown.
To investigate the effect of ginseng on gut microbiota, 10 obese middle-aged Korean women took Panax ginseng extracts for 8 wk and assessment of body composition parameters, metabolic biomarkers, and gut microbiota composition was performed using 16S rRNA gene-based pyrosequencing at baseline and at 8 wk. Significant changes were observed in body weight and body mass index; however, slight changes were observed in gut microbiota. We divided the participants into two groups, the effective and the ineffective weight loss groups, depending on weight loss effect, in order to determine whether the antiobesity effect was influenced by the composition of gut microbiota, and the composition of gut microbiota was compared between the two groups.
Prior to ginseng intake, significant differences of gut microbiota were observed between both at phyla and genera and the gut microbiota of the effective and ineffective weight loss groups was segregated on a principal coordinate analysis plot.
Results of this study indicate that ginseng exerted a weight loss effect and slight effects on gut microbiota in all participants. In addition, its antiobesity effects differed depending on the composition of gut microbiota prior to ginseng intake.
肠道微生物群被认为是控制体重的主要因素之一。人参及其主要成分具有抗肥胖作用，但对肠道微生物群的影响尚不清楚。
为了研究人参对肠道微生物群的影响，10 名肥胖的中年韩国女性服用了人参提取物 8 周，并在基线和 8 周时使用 16S rRNA 基因焦磷酸测序评估身体成分参数、代谢生物标志物和肠道微生物群组成。体重和体重指数有显著变化；然而，肠道微生物群只有轻微变化。我们根据体重减轻的效果将参与者分为有效和无效减肥组，以确定抗肥胖效果是否受到肠道微生物群组成的影响，并比较两组之间的肠道微生物群组成。
在服用人参之前，在门和属水平上观察到肠道微生物群的显著差异，并且有效和无效减肥组的肠道微生物群在主坐标分析图上被分离。
本研究结果表明，人参在所有参与者中均表现出减肥效果和对肠道微生物群的轻微影响。此外，其抗肥胖效果取决于服用人参前肠道微生物群的组成。
