• Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.247-252
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• 2012

Seed morphology in the subtribe Agrimoniinae (Rosaceae) was examined using scanning electron microscopy to identify distinct characters and evaluate their evolution in a phylogenetic framework for five genera in the subtribe: Agrimonia L., Aremonia Neck. ex Nestl., Hagenia J.F. Gmel., Leucosidea Eckl. & Zeyh., and Spenceria Trimen. All genera have one or two mature achenes in a fruiting hypanthium. In the seed coats, the cell shape, size, wall features, and sculpturing vary across genera. Of most significance is the presence of papillae structures in both Agrimonia and Aremonia. Through the mapping of papillae features onto phylogenetic trees, either one or two changes in seed coats are hypothesized. The phylogenetic tree inferred from four nuclear and six chloroplast regions of sequence data suggests that at least two steps of papillae sculpturing on seed coats are required. On the other hand, in the phylogenetic tree of a low-copy nuclear gene, one independent evolutionary step is postulated to explain the current character states. In the latter hypothesis, the seed coat sculpturing also supports a monophyletic relationship for cosmopolitan Agrimonia and European endemic Aremonia. The seed coat sculpturing provides valuable information for inferring phylogenetic relationships at the generic level in the subtribe Agrimoniinae.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.263-270
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• 2016

Background: In this study, microwave extraction was used, which is an effective method to extract useful bioactive substances as it requires low quantities of solvent and short time periods. The aim of this study was to determine the optimal extraction conditions for Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb. Methods and Results: The independent variables were ethanol concentration, microwave power, and extraction time, each of which had five levels. The dependent variables were total polyphenol and total flavonoid content, and DPPH radical scavenging activity. To determine the optimal extraction conditions for bioactive compounds, a response surface methodology was employed. Contour maps were generated from polynomial equations. The optimal conditions were then assumed by superimposing these contour maps. Based on the resulting graph, the optimal microwave extraction conditions for Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb were determined as 42 - 48% ethanol concentration, 240 - 280W microwave power, and 13 - 20 min of extraction time. Conclusions: Ethanol concentration had a significant effect on microwave extraction, in terms of total polyphenol and total flavonoid content, as well as DPPH radical scavenging activity. Microwave power and extraction time influenced the total polyphenol content, but not the total flavonoid content or the DPPH radical scavenging activity.

• Advances in Traditional Medicine
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.217-228
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• 2007

Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb. has long been used for a useful natural agent ameliorating inflammation related symptoms in the folk medicine recipe. This study was performed to investigate effects of Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb.(AP) on the expression of inflammation related genes such as the inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in macrophage cell line, RAW 264.7 cells. The AP (whole plants) was extracted with 80% ethanol and sequentially partitioned with solvents in order to increase polarity. Among the various solvent extracts of AP, the n-butanol (BuOH) fraction showed the most powerful inhibitory ability against nitric oxide (NO) production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW 264.7 cells without affecting cell viability. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis revealed that the BuOH fraction provided a primary inhibitor of the iNOS protein and mRNA expression in LPS-induced RAW 264.7 cells. The DPPH and OH radical scavenging activities of the several fractions of 80% ethanol extracts of AP significantly increased by EtOAC and BuOH fractions. Thus, the present study suggests that the response of a component of the BuOH fraction to NO generation via iNOS expression provide an important clue to elucidate anti-inflammatory mechanism of AP.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.236-241
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to investigate the mechanism of ethanol extract of Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb. (EAP)-reduced melanogenesis and diphenyl-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity. Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb., a perennial herbaceous plant, has been used as an antihemorrhagic, anthelminntic, and antiinflammatory agents in Chinese herbal medicine. In the present study, we observed that melanin synthesis and tyrosinase activity of B16F10 cells were significantly decreased by EAP. However, EAP could not suppress tyrosinase activity in the cell-free system, whereas kojic acid directly inhibited tyrosinase activity. Furthermore, EAP decreased the protein expression of tyrosinase, tyrosinase-related prootein 1 (TRP-1), and tyrosinase-related prootein 2 (TRP-2). EAP scavenged DPPH radical up to 41% with 100 ${\mu}g/m{\ell}$ concentration. These results suggest that the hypopigmentary effect of EPA was due to regulation of tyrosinase protein.

• Korean journal of food and cookery science
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.122-125
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• 1995

An attempt was made to determine the effect of the volatile components of edible wild grass by cooking. We collect the volatile components of Agrimonia Japonica by dynamic\ulcorner head space method. Samples were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS). Thirty-six components, including 16 hydrocarbons, 7 alcohols, 4 esters, 7 benzoid compounds, 1 aldehyde and 1 ketone were confirmed in raw samples. Also 6 hydrocarbons identified in cooked sample. Alpha-pinene and 3-he-xane-ol were regarded as the most abundant components in raw sample. By heating of Japonica, most of the volatile compounds were disappeared, but alpha-pinene was remained abundantly.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.398-404
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• 2010

Complementary and alternative medicines are considered as a promising research field to develop new therapies for various allergic diseases. In this study, we investigated the anti-allergic effect of Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb (AP) by using passive cutaneous anaphylaxis in mice and its mechanism of action in mast cells. The extract of AP reversibly inhibited degranulation in RBL-2H3 cells and bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMCs). AP also suppressed the passive cutaneous anaphylaxis inducing by IgE and antigen (Ag) in a dose-dependent manner. In the study to find its mechanism of action, AP inhibited the phosphorylation of Syk kinase, a pivotal protein which is regulated by Src-family kinase for activation of mast cells. In addition, AP also suppressed activation of Akt and Erk1/2 that are critical for the production of cytokines in mast cells. The results strongly suggest that AP exerts anti-allergic activity in vitro and in vivo through the inhibition of activation of Syk in mast cells.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.399-409
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• 2009

Objectives : The aim of this study was to experiment the antitumor activity of Agrimonia pilosa Ledebour (APL) in human stomach cancer (AGS) cell lines (in vitro) and male C57BL/6J mouse (in vivo). Methods : The effects of the ethanol extract from the plant on several transplantable rodent tumors were investigated in vitro by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxy phenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium, inner salt (MTS) assay. DNA content analysis and Western blot analysis. Agrimonia pilosa Ledebour (APL) was given to rats with Lewis Lung Carcinoma (LLC) cells. The experimental rats were divided into 3 groups in vivo. Saline was injected into the abdominal cavity in the first group, 50 mg/kg APL was injected into the abdominal cavity in the second group and 100 mg/kg was injected into the abdominal cavity in the third group. After that, we checked their tumor volume periodically. Results : At first, human gastric cancer (AGS) cell lines (in vitro) showed decreased cell viability, and increased $sub-G_1$ contents. When we experimented rat intestinal epithelial (RIE)l as same condition, this result didn't show. With this, compared to normal cells, Agrimonia pilosa Ledebour (APL) led selectively to the extinction of cells only in human gastric cancer. Moreover, we showed that the traditional herbal medicine APL induced caspase-dependent apoptosis in AGS cells. Next, APL inhibited the growth of LLC-bearing mouse tumor. However, we could not verify APL induced caspase-dependent apoptosis in LLC-bearing mouse tumor. Conclusions : The roots of Agrimonia pilosa Ledebour (APL) contain some antitumor constituents.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.261-266
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• 2015

In this study, we investigated the applicability of functional materials by examining various physiological activities with an extract from the Agrimonia pilosa root. The A. pilosa extract showed low cytotoxicity against murine melanoma B16F10 cells. With little or no cytotoxicity at various concentrations, the A. pilosa extract showed high levels of DPPH radical scavenging activity ($ID_{50}$, 20.70 mg/L) and anti-microbial activity against Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, and Candida albicans. In particular, it had a high level of anti-microbial activities against Gram-positive bacteria. These results suggest that the A. pilosa extract can be used as a natural preservative. It also showed inhibition of tyrosinase activity ($ID_{50}$, 90.18 mg/L), as does kojic acid ($ID_{50}$, 89.13 mg/L), and especially, a higher decrease in melanin content ($ID_{50}$, 62.5 mg/L) than the arbutin level ($ID_{50}$, 100.7 mg/L) as a positive control. These findings suggest that the A. pilosa extract inhibits melanin synthesis by suppressing the intracellular tyrosinase expression. These results indicate that the A. pilosa extract may be an effective material for functional cosmetics, such as skin whitening materials.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.302-306
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• 2015

In this work, the antioxidant activity and total phenolic compound content of 6 fractions of Smallanthus sonchifolius, Agrimonia pilosa, and Lithospermum erythrorhizon extract were investigated. The highest total phenolic compound contents of each plant extracts were obtained from n-butanol ($13.75{\pm}0.21%$) and methylene chloride ($12.89{\pm}1.10%$) fractions (S. sonchifolius), ethyl acetate ($19.69{\pm}1.02%$) and water ($18.72{\pm}0.76%$) fractions (A. pilosa), and n-butanol ($36.26{\pm}1.26%$) and ethyl acetate ($17.66{\pm}0.94%$) fractions (L. erythrorhizon), respectively. As a result of DPPH radical scavenging activity in 10 mg/mL condition, the highest activity were obtained from n-butanol fraction of S. sonchifolius (81.06%), ethyl acetate fraction of A. pilosa (86.32%), and n-butanol fraction of L. erythrorhizon (82.6%), respectively. Also, the highest reducing power was obtained same fractions as well as DPPH adical scavenging activity. Overall, antioxidant activity has relatively closely connected with contents of total phenolic compounds in S. sonchifolius and L. erythrorhizon extracts.

• Molecular & Cellular Toxicology
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2009

Microglial cells constitute the first line of defense against infection and injury in the brain. This study was conducted to evaluate the protective mechanisms of Agrimonia pilosa (AP) on LPS-induced activation of BV-2 microglial cells. The effects of AP on gene expression profiles in activated BV-2 microglial cells were evaluated using microarray analysis. BV-2 microglial cells were cultured in a 100 mm dish ($1{\times}10^7/mL$) for 24 hr and then pretreated with 1 g/mL AP or left untreated for 30 min. Next, 1 g/mL LPS was added to the samples and the cells were reincubated at $37^{\circ}C$ for 30 min, 3 hr and 6 hr. The gene expression profiles of the BV-2 microglial cells varied depending on the AP. The microarray analysis revealed that MAPK signaling pathway-related genes were down-regulated and IL10 gene was up-regulated in AP-treated BV-2 microglial cells. AP can affect the inflammatory response and MAPK pathway in BV-2 microglial cells.