• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.409-412
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• 1999

The in vitro anticoagulant and fibrinolytic activities of crude extract from insects which have been used as traditional medicines. The extracts of Formica, Huechys and Eupolyph-aga/Steleophaga prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time and thrombin time compared to the value of the control. The fibrinolytic activity of insect extracts was also tested by fibrin plate method. We found that the extracts of Cicadae Periostracum, Eupolyphaga/Steleophdga, Mantidis $O{\ddot{o}}otheca$ and Huechys directly could hydrolyze the fibrin clot without the activation of plasminogen by plasminogen activators.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.477-481
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• 2000

The cytotoxicity of crude insect drugs was measured using HeLa cells originating from human cervix and uterine cancer. using the dye uptake assay in order to find potential anticancer agents. Three kinds of extracts (buffer, methanol and ethylacetate) were prepared from 26 insects and used as raw materials for the activity assay. Among these, the buffer extracts from Tabanus, Mylabris and Huechys showed a potent anticancer activity, and those from Catharsius, Red ant, Scorpion, Tabanus and Vespae Nidus showed a strong L-amino acid oxidase (AAO) activity as well as cytotoxicity. In contrast, buffer extracts from Gryllotalpa orientalis and Apriona germari larvae showed greater/more rapid Hela cell growth than that of other insects.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.66-70
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• 2002

The in vitro anticoagulant and fibrinolytic activities of crude extracts from insects were evaluated in order to find effective therapeutic drugs for the treatment of myocardial and cerebral thrombosis. We prepared three types of extracts (water, methanol and ethylacetate) from 28 insects for use as raw materials for the activity assays. The fibrinolytic activity was tested using the fibrin plate method and the activated partial thromboplastin time and thrombin time were measured for blood clotting activity. With regards to the fibrinolytic system, water extracts of six kinds of insects displayed a remarkable level of activity with a plasmin-like action. The water extracts of [Catharsius molossus, Eupolyphaga sinensis, Huechys sanguinea, Mantidis $o\ddot{o}theca$, Mimela splendens, and Polistes mandarinus (Vespae Nidus)] exhibited the activity. On the other hand, the methanol extracts did not display any fibrinolytic activity. In terms of the coagulation system, an aqueous extract of silkworm Tongchunghacho (Paecilomyces japonica), Oxya japonica japonica and Buthus martensi (Scorpion) increased the clotting time significantly longer (181 times) than the control. These results suggest that crude drugs from insects are useful sources for the development of new drugs for use in treatments involving blood coagulation and fibrinolysis.