• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.95-102
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• 2005

The term pharmacognosy as applied to a constituent scientific discipline of Korean Medical Food (KMF) has been in use for nearly several years, and it refers to studies on the pharmacological properties of natural products foods. During the last half of the 20th century, pharmacognosy for KMF evolved from being a descriptive botanical subject to one having a more chemical and biological focus. At the beginning of the 21st century, teaching pharmacognosy for KMF teaching in academic culinary arts and natural healing institutions has been given new relevance as a result of the explosive growth in the use of herbal foods (health foods) in modern KMF practice. In turn, pharmacognosy for KMF research areas are continuing to expand, and now include aspects of cellular and molecular biology in relation to natural products, ethnobotany and phytotherapy, in addition to the more traditional analytical method development and phytochemistry. Examples are provided in this review of promising bioactive compounds obtained in two multidisciplinary natural product KMF development and discovery projects, aimed at the elucidation of new plant-derived cancer chemotherapeutic agents and novel cancer chemopreventives, respectively. The systematic study of KMF offers pharmacognosy groups an attractive new area of research, ranging from investigating the biologically active principles of KMF and their mode of action and potential active substance interactions, to sanitary and quality control, and involvement in clinical trials.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.107-113
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• 2012

In order to investigate the diversity of endophytes, fungal endophytes in Panax ginseng Meyer cultivated in Korea were isolated and identified using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences of ribosomal DNA. Three cultivars of 3-year-old ginseng roots (Chunpoong, Yunpoong, and Gumpoong) were used to isolate fungal endophytes. Surface sterilized ginseng roots were placed on potato dextrose agar plates supplemented with ampicilin and streptomycin to inhibit bacterial growth. Overall, 38 fungal endophytes were isolated from 12 ginseng roots. According to the sequence analysis of the ITS1-5.8S-ITS2, 38 fungal isolates were classified into 4 different fungal species, which were Phoma radicina, Fusarium oxysporum, Setophoma terrestris and Ascomycota sp. 2-RNK. The most dominant fungal endophyte was P. radicina in 3 cultivars. The percentage of dominant endophytes of P. radicina was 65.8%. The percentage of colonization frequency of P. radicina was 80%, 52.9%, and 75% in Chunpoong, Yunpoong, and Gumpoong, respectively. The second most dominant fungal endophyte was F. oxysporum. The diversity of the fungal endophytes was low and no ginseng cultivar specificity among endophytes was detected in this study. The identified endophytes can be potential fungi for the production of bioactive compounds and control against ginseng pathogens.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.466-473
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• 2019

Angelica gigas has been used as a Korean traditional medicine for pain relief and gynecological health. Although the extracts are reported to have an anti-inflammatory property, the bioactive compounds of the herbal plant and the effect on T cell responses are unclear. In this study, we identified decursinol angelate (DA) as an immunomodulatory ingredient of A. gigas and demonstrated its suppressive effect on type 17 helper T (Th17) cell responses. Helper T cell culture experiments revealed that DA impeded the differentiation of Th17 cells and IL-17 production without affecting the survival and proliferation of CD4 T cells. By using a dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis model, we determined the therapeutic potential of DA for the treatment of ulcerative colitis. DA treatment attenuated the severity of colitis including a reduction in weight loss, colon shortening, and protection from colonic tissue damage induced by DSS administration. Intriguingly, Th17 cells concurrently with neutrophils in the colitis tissues were significantly decreased by the DA treatment. Overall, our experimental evidence reveals for the first time that DA is an anti-inflammatory compound to modulate inflammatory T cells, and suggests DA as a potential therapeutic agent to manage inflammatory conditions associated with Th17 cell responses.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.239-248
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• 2022

To determine the effect of Korean medicine treatment of avascular necrosis of the femoral head (ANFH) this study reviewed both single ingredients and bioactive compounds in the treatment of ANFH in a rat model. Literature was retrieved from PubMed and Google Scholar using the keywords "femur head necrosis," "natural extract," and "rat." The data from studies analyzed included: rats' characteristics, development methods of ANFH, natural extracts administration, observation methods, and outcome indicators. Two independent researchers screened all articles retrieved and 26 studies were chosen. The most used rat species was the Sprague Dawley rat (76.9%). To induce ANFH, steroid injections (46.2%), and oral gavage (53.8%) were typically used. Studies focused mainly on factors affecting bone formation (65.3%), and apoptosis (53.8%). Research on ANFH focused on using traditional natural substances mentioned in classical literature to confirm its effectiveness against anti-inflammation, osteogenesis, and cell death. ANFH has a diverse etiology, therefore research models such as genetic analysis of human-derived samples from ANFH patients may shed more light on the condition. Moreover, research into herbal medicines and pharmacoacupuncture treatment of ANFH should precede.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.177-182
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• 2012

A new composition of standardized Scutellariae Radix extract (HPO12) was developed for treatment of Alzheimer's disease. For the preclinical pharmacokinetic study of HPO12, a rapid, sensitive, and selective LCMS/MS method was developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of 4 bioactive compounds, baicalein, baicalin, wogonin, and wogonoside. After extraction with ethylacetate, chromatographic analysis was performed on a Thermo $C_{18}$ column ($150mm{\times}2.1mm$, $3{\mu}m$) with a mobile phase consisting of 0.1% formic acid (A) and 0.1% formic acid in 95% acetonitrile (B) by using gradient elution at a flow rate of $250{\mu}L/min$. Analytes introduced to a mass spectrometer were monitored by multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) in positive ion mode. Using $25{\mu}L$ of plasma sample, the method was validated over the following concentration ranges: 25-5000 ng/mL for baicalein, 20-40000 ng/mL for baicalin, 1-1000 ng/mL for wogonin, and 5-10000 ng/mL for wogonoside. The intra- and inter-day precision and accuracy of the quality control samples at the 4 concentrations showed $\leq$ 13.7% relative standard deviation (RSD) and 86.6-105.5% accuracy. The method was successfully applied to determine the concentrations of baicalein, baicalin, wogonin, and wogonoside in rat plasma after intraperitoneal and oral administrations of HPO12.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.9-15
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• 2017

Cichorium intybus L. (chicory) roots and leaves are widely used in herbal preparations, which have beneficial effects on the stimulation of digestion and metabolism of food ingredients, gastric juice excretion, diuretic action, and bile excretion. Notably, chicory root is well known as a source of polyphenols, compounds with recognized value in health improvement. In this study, we examined the physicochemical characteristics (TA, pH, and sensory evaluation) of bioactive yoghurt containing different concentrations of chicory. With increasing incubation time (5 h), the TA of the yoghurt increased whereas the pH decreased, regardless of the amount of chicory. As the amount of chicory increased, the scores for color, flavor, taste, and overall acceptability generally decreased. Among the tested groups, yoghurt with the addition of 1% chicory attained the highest scores. Further studies on the production of bioactive yogurt with optimum chicory concentration are needed.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.382-390
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• 2018

Background: The plant Aster koraiensis has long been used as an ingredient in folk medicine. It has been reported that Aster koraiensis extract (AKE) prevents the progression of diabetes-induced retinopathy and nephropathy. However, although these beneficial effects of AKE on diabetes complications have been identified, the antidiabetic effects of AKE have not yet been completely investigated and quantified. In the present study, the glucose-lowering and antioxidant effects of aqueous and ethanolic AKEs were evaluated. Methods and Results: The glucose-lowering effects of aqueous and ethanolic (30%-, 50%-, and 80%-ethanol) AKEs were investigated via ${\alpha}$-glucosidase inhibitory assays. The mode of inhibition by AKEs on ${\alpha}$-glucosidase was identified through kinetic analysis. The total antioxidant capacity of each of the 4 AKEs was evaluated by assessing their conversion rate of $Cu^{2+}$ to $Cu^+$. The content of chlorogenic acid and 3,5-di-O-caffeoylquinic acid, the bioactive compounds in AKE, in each extract were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The AKEs showed potent ${\alpha}$-glucosidase inhibitory activity with mixed inhibition mode, and significant antioxidant capacity. Conclusions: These results of this study suggested that the AKEs tested had ${\alpha}$-glucosidase inhibitory and antioxidant effects. Among the extracts, the 80% ethanol extract showed the most significant ${\alpha}$-glucosidase inhibitory activity, with a half maximal inhibitory concentration ($IC_{50}$ value) of $1.65{\pm}0.36mg/m{\ell}$ and a half maximal effective concentration ($EC_{50}$ value) for its antioxidant activity of $0.42{\pm}0.10mg/m{\ell}$. It can therefore be used as a source of therapeutic agents to treat diabetes patients.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2020

Asthma is a complex inflammatory disease of the lung characterized by variable airflow obstruction, airway hyperresponsiveness, airway inflammation, and reduction of respiratory function. Its prevalence and incidence are increasing because of the effect of various environmental and lifestyle risk factors. Steroid inhalation, long-acting agonists, and other synthetic drugs are used for the treatment of this disease. However, they have some side effects and show unsatisfied result and response after treatment. Therefore, many researchers have focused on the development of natural product-related treatment for asthma to suppress the side effects and unsatisfied results. Seaweeds contain various bioactive compounds with anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and anti-oxidant activities. Thus, we investigated the asthma treatment-related literature using marine algae via the Google scholar search engine. Consequently, the literature is rarely investigated, but is increasing steadily. The literature was performed as a comparison study with an ovalbumin-induced group or drug-treated group, and investigated the antiasthma activity of algae ethanol extract. Although many researchers have studied marine algae-derived therapeutic agents for asthma, the amount of literature is rare compared with those of herbal medicine-derived therapeutic agents. Conclusively, we suggest that many researchers should investigate and develop algae-derived therapeutic agents for asthma treatment.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.137-144
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• 2009

In this study, quantitative and pattern recognition analyses for the quality evaluation of Herba Epimedii using HPLC was developed. For quantitative analysis, five major bioactive constituents, hyperin, epimedin A, epimedin B, epimedin C, and icariin were determined. Analysis was carried out on Capcell pak $C_{18}$ column ($250{\time}4.6$ mm, 5 ${\mu}m$) with a mobile phase of mixture of acetonitrile and 0.1% formic acid, using UV detection at 270 nm. The linear behavior was observed over the investigated concentration range (2-50 ${\mu}g/mL;\;r_2\;>$ 0.99) for all analytes. The intraand inter-day precisions were lower than 4.3% (as a relative standard deviation, RSD) and accuracies between 95.1% and 104.4%. The HPLC analytical method for pattern recognition analysis was validated by repeated analysis of one reference sample. The RSD of intra- and inter-day variation of relative retention time (RRT) and relative peak area (RPA) of the 12 selected common peaks were below 0.8% and 4.7%, respectively. The developed methods were applied to analysis of twenty Herba Epimedii extract samples. Contents of hyperin, epimedin A, epimedin B, epimedin C, and icariin were calculated to be 0$\sim$0.79, 0.69$\sim$1.91, 0.93$\sim$9.58, 0.65$\sim$3.05, and 2.43$\sim$11.8 mg/g dried plant. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that most samples were clustered together with the reference samples but several apart from the main cluster in the PC score plot, indicating differences in overall chemical composition between two clusters. The present study suggests that quantitative determination of marker compounds combined with pattern-recognition method can provide a comprehensive approach for the quality assessment of herbal medicines.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.456-460
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• 2008

Santalum album has been used as a folk medicine for treatment of skin diseases, inflammation, gonorrhea, gleet, and cystitis in India and other Asian countries. In a search for possible bioactive agents from natural sources, we found that the various solvent extracts of S. album showed significant antioxidative effect in 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity test and moderate other biological functions submitted to the several bioassay systems for whitening and cytotoxicity evaluations. Among the tested extracts displayed DPPH radical scavenging activity, and the 70% acetone extract showed the most potent activity with an $IC_{50}$ value of $18.6\;{\mu}g/ml$, more potent than a positive control, L-ascorbic acid ($IC_{50}$, $28.7\;{\mu}g/mL$). Also, anti-lipid peroxidation, tyrosinase inhibitory, and cytotoxic effects were determined in each experiment. Total phenolic content of 70% acetone extract was found to be 117.1 mg equivalent of gallic acid per g of extract. Previous phytochemical investigation reveals the presence of phenolic compounds. The results indicate that S. album possess potential antioxidant activity and phenolic constituents are responsible for this capacity.