Lee Da-Yeon, Arndt Juliana, O'Connell Jennifer F, Egan Josephine M, Kim Yoo
Department of Nutritional Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA.
Laboratory of Clinical Investigation, National Institute on Aging, Baltimore, MD 21224, USA.
Biology (Basel). 2024 Jan 8;13(1):36. doi: 10.3390/biology13010036.
Cellular senescence is defined as an irreversible cell cycle arrest accompanied by morphological and physiological alterations during aging. Red ginseng (RG), processed from fresh ginseng ( C.A. Meyer) with a one-time steaming and drying process, is a well-known beneficial herbal medicine showing antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-aging properties. The current study aimed to investigate the benefits of RG in alleviating hepatic cellular senescence and its adverse effects in 19-month-old aged mice. We applied two different intervention methods and durations to compare RG's effects in a time-dependent manner: (1) oral gavage injection for 4 weeks and (2) ad libitum intervention for 14 weeks. We observed that 4-week RG administration was exerted to maintain insulin homeostasis against developing age-associated insulin insensitivity and suppressed cellular senescence pathway in the liver and primary hepatocytes. Moreover, with remarkable improvement of insulin homeostasis, 14-week RG supplementation downregulated the activation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and its downstream transcriptional factor nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) in aged mice. Lastly, RG treatment significantly reduced the senescence-associated β-galactosidase (SA-β-gal)-positive cells in primary hepatocytes and ionizing radiation (IR)-exposed mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs). Taken together, we suggest that RG can be a promising candidate for a senolytic substance by preventing hepatic cellular senescence.
细胞衰老被定义为一种不可逆的细胞周期停滞,伴随着衰老过程中的形态和生理变化。红参(RG)由新鲜人参(C.A. Meyer)经过一次性蒸煮干燥加工而成,是一种著名的有益草药,具有抗氧化、抗炎和抗衰老特性。本研究旨在探讨红参对19月龄老年小鼠肝脏细胞衰老的缓解作用及其不良反应。我们采用了两种不同的干预方法和持续时间,以时间依赖性方式比较红参的作用:(1)口服灌胃注射4周;(2)自由摄取干预14周。我们观察到,给予红参4周可维持胰岛素稳态,对抗与年龄相关的胰岛素不敏感的发展,并抑制肝脏和原代肝细胞中的细胞衰老途径。此外,随着胰岛素稳态的显著改善,补充红参14周可下调老年小鼠中c-Jun氨基末端激酶(JNK)及其下游转录因子核因子-κB(NF-κB)的激活。最后,红参处理显著减少了原代肝细胞和电离辐射(IR)暴露的小鼠胚胎成纤维细胞(MEF)中衰老相关β-半乳糖苷酶(SA-β-gal)阳性细胞。综上所述,我们认为红参通过预防肝脏细胞衰老,有望成为一种有前途的溶衰老物质候选物。