A Comparative Study on Analysis of Ginsenosides in American Ginseng Root Residue by HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS and UPLC-HRMS-MS/MS.

Ginseng (Panax quinquefolius), a popular herbal and nutritional supplement consumed worldwide, has been demonstrated to possess vital biological activities, which can be attributed to the presence of ginsenosides. However, the presence of ginsenosides in ginseng root residue, a by-product obtained during processing of ginseng beverage, remains unexplored. The objectives of this study were to develop a high-performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array detection-mass spectrometry (HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS) and an ultra-high-performance-liquid-chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-HRMS-MS/MS) method for the comparison of ginsenoside analysis in ginseng root residue. Results showed that by employing a Supelco Ascentis Express C18 column (150 × 4.6 mm ID, particle size 2.7 µm) and a gradient mobile phase of deionized water and acetonitrile with a flow rate at 1 mL/min and detection at 205 nm, a total of 10 ginsenosides, including internal standard saikosaponin A, were separated within 18 min and detected by HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS. Whereas with UPLC-HRMS-MS/MS, all the 10 ginsenosides were separated within six minutes by using an Acquity UPLC BEH C18 column (50 × 2.1 mm ID, particle size 1.7 µm, 130 Å) and a gradient mobile phase of ammonium acetate and acetonitrile with column temperature at 50 °C, flow rate at 0.4 mL/min and detection by selected reaction monitoring (SRM) mode. High accuracy and precision was shown, with limit of quantitation (LOQ) ranging from 0.2−1.9 µg/g for HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS and 0.269−6.640 ng/g for UPLC-HRMS-MS/MS. The contents of nine ginsenosides in the ginseng root residue ranged from

Polysaccharide Isolated from Zizyphus jujuba ( Hóng Zǎo) Inhibits Interleukin-2 Production in Jurkat T Cells.

Zizyphus jujuba ( Hóng Zǎo), a traditional Chinese herb widely used in many Asian countries, has been shown to possess vital biological activities such as anti-cancer activity. The objective of this study was to evaluate the immunomodulatory effect of deproteinated polysaccharide (DP) isolated from Z. jujuba. The DP isolated from Z. jujuba consisted of two polysaccharide fractions and their molecular weights (MWs) were found to be 143,108 and 67,633 Da, respectively. The DP could significantly decrease interleukin (IL)-2 production in phytohemagglutinin (PHA)-activated Jurkat T cells in a dose-dependent manner after 48 h of incubation, with the inhibition being 47.5%, 61.2%, and 81.7% for DP concentrations of 0.75, 1.75, and 2.5 mg/ml, respectively. Thus, our study showed that DP isolated from Z. jujuba may possess anti-inflammatory activity as it could significantly reduce IL-2 production in activated Jurkat T cells.

Biotransformation of ginsenoside Rd in the ginseng extraction residue by fermentation with lingzhi (Ganoderma lucidum).

Ginseng and lingzhi (Ganoderma lucidum) both are valuable traditional Chinese medicines and have been extensively utilised in functional foods and traditional medicines in many Asian countries. However, massive quantity of ginseng residue is produced after extraction of ginseng which still contains a lot of bioactive compounds such as ginsenosides. The goal of this study was to reuse the American ginseng extraction residue as the fermentation medium of G. lucidum to produce bioactive ginsenoside enriched biotransformation products. The changes of ginsenosides in the fermentation products were analysed during fermentation. Our results showed that after 30 days of fermentation, ginsenoside Rg1, Rd, and compound K (CK) significantly increased, especially Rd, while other ginsenosides (Re, Rb1 and Rc) decreased during fermentation. Ginsenoside Rd is the major ginsenoside in the final fermentation product. Furthermore, the biotransformation of ginsenosides was the major reaction in this fermentation process.

Antiproliferation of melanoma cells by polysaccharide isolated from Zizyphus jujuba.

OBJECTIVE: Zizyphus jujuba, a traditional Chinese herb rich in functional components such as polysaccharide, has been widely consumed in Asian countries. The objective of this study was to determine the antiproliferation effect of melanoma cells as affected by deproteinized polysaccharide (DPP) isolated from Z. jujuba. METHODS: Deproteinized polysaccharide was obtained through boiling water extraction, ethanol precipitation, deproteinization, and dialysis, and the molecular weight of DPP was determined by high-performance gel-filtration chromatography. Melanoma cell viability was assessed by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay, the cell cycle was analyzed by flow cytometry, the formation of apoptotic bodies was observed under a fluorescence microscope at 450 nm, and caspase-3 and caspase-9 were measured by an assay kit. RESULTS: Deproteinized polysaccharide was composed of two fractions with average molecular weights of 143 108 and 67 633 Da. The 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide test showed that the antiproliferation effect of DPP on melanoma cells followed a dose- and time-dependent course. The 50% inhibitory concentration of DPP in inhibiting melanoma cell growth was 3.99 ± 0.10 mg/mL after 24-h treatment but decreased significantly to 3.36 ± 0.14 mg/mL after 48 h. The cell cycle assay revealed melanoma cells to be arrested in G2/M phase. Moreover, with DPP treatment, the apoptotic bodies were generated, accompanied by an increase in caspase-3 and caspase-9 activity. CONCLUSIONS: This outcome suggested that DPP may be used as a potential anti-skin cancer agent for further in vivo and clinical trial experiments.

Anti-photoaging effects of soy isoflavone extract (aglycone and acetylglucoside form) from soybean cake.

Soy isoflavones, found in soybean and soybean products, have been reported to possess many physiological activities such as antioxidant activity, inhibition of cancer cell proliferation, reduction of cardiovascular risk, prevention of osteoporosis and alleviation of postmenopausal syndrome. In our previous study, soy isoflavone extract ISO-1 (containing 12 soy isoflavones) from soybean cake was demonstrated to prevent skin damage caused by UVB exposure. In this study, soy isoflavone extract from soybean cake was further purified and evaluated for the protective effects on UVB-induced damage. The results revealed that Fraction 3, which contains the aglycone group (daidzein, genistein and glycitein) and acetylglucoside group (acetyldaidzin, acetylgenistin and acetylglycitin) of soy isoflavones, could inhibit UVB-induced death of human keratinocytes and reduce the level of desquamation, transepidermal water loss (TEWL), erythema and epidermal thickness in mouse skin. Furthermore, topical application of Fraction 3 increased the activity of catalase and suppressed cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) expression in mice exposed to UVB. In addition, in comparison with ISO-1 and genistein, the Fraction 3 possessed much greater protective effects on both UVB-induced oxidative stress and keratinocyte death than other fractions. Therefore, the soy isoflavone extract Fraction 3 from soybean cake is a desirable anti-photoaging agent for skin care.