• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.66-72
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• 1998

Studies were performed to determine the effect of Korean red ginseng (extract powder, spray-dried), it is made of choice 6-year-old raw ginseng roots, and processed by steaming and drying, on jejunal crypt survival, endogenous spleen colony formation, and apoptosis in jejunal crypt cells of irradiated mice. Jejunal crypts were protected by pretreatment of red ginseng (1 mg/head, single I.P. at 24hours before irradiation, p<0.05). Red ginseng administration before irradiation (1 mg/head, single I.P at 24hours before irradiation) resulted in an increase of the formation of endogenous spleen colony (p<0.05). The frequency of radiation-Induced apoptosis in intestinal crypt cells was also reduced by treatment of red ginseng both pretreatment (P.O.: 2 mg/ml of drinking water for 7 days, p<0.005, I.P.: 1 mg/head, single I.P. at 24 hours before irradiation, p<0.005) and post-treatment (1 mg/head, single I.P at 30 minutes after irradiation, p<0.05). These results indicated that Korean red ginseng might be a useful radio-protector, especially since it is a relatively nontoxic natural product. Further studies are needed to characterize better the promotion nature of red ginseng and its fractions.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.16-20
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• 2018

Background: The Panax ginseng plant is used as an herbal medicine. Phytosterols of P. ginseng have inhibitory effects on inflammation-related factors in HepG2 cells. Methods: Phytosterols (e.g., stigmasterol and ${\beta}$-sitosterol) in the roots of P. ginseng grown under various conditions were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography. The P. ginseng roots analyzed in this study were collected from three cultivation areas in Korea (i.e., Geumsan, Yeongju, and Jinan) and differed by cultivation year (i.e., 4 years, 5 years, and 6 years) and production process (i.e., straight ginseng, red ginseng, and white ginseng). Results: The concentrations of stigmasterol and ${\beta}$-sitosterol in P. ginseng roots were 2.22-23.04 mg/g and 7.35-59.09 mg/g, respectively. The highest concentrations of stigmasterol and ${\beta}$-sitosterol were in the roots of 6-year-old P. ginseng cultivated in Jinan (82.14 mg/g and 53.23 mg/g, respectively). Conclusion: Six-year-old white ginseng and white ginseng cultivated in Jinan containing stigmasterol and b-sitosterol are potentially a new source of income in agriculture.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.119-125
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• 2014

According to the results of my study on the chromatographic analysis of fresh ginseng (Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer) roots, most of the contents of protopanxadiol ginsenosides $Rb_1$, Rc, $Rb_2$, and Rd are derived from the corresponding malonyl ginsenosides in fresh ginseng by a heat process. Also, I confirmed that acetyl ginsenosides are naturally occurring constituents in fresh ginseng, not decarboxylates from malonyl ginsenosides. Seven neutral ginsenosides $Rg_1$, Re, Rf, Rc, $Rb_1$, $Rb_2$, and Rd were transformed to specific conversions in red ginseng preparation conditions. The conversion paths progress by three rules concluded from my study. These conversion rules are I: the ether bond is stable at positions 3 and 6 in the dammarane skeleton, II: the ether bond between sugars is stable in glycosides, and III: the ether bond to glycosides is unstable at position 20 in the dammarane skeleton.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.118-125
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• 2010

This study was carried out to determine changes in general chemical composition, free sugars, physicochemical properties of extract, and ginsenoside contents depending upon processing methods. Ginseng roots harvested from the same field were employed for the processing into white ginseng (WG), taegeuk ginseng (TG), red ginseng A (RGA, steamed one time), and red ginseng B (RGB, steamed three times). The fat content decreased by increasing duration of treatment and number of steaming treatment. On the other hand, there was no significant variation in contents of ash and carbohydrate depending on processing methods. Contents of sucrose and maltose was higher in Taegeuk and red ginseng than those of white ginseng. Steamed ginseng root (taegeuk and red ginseng root) showed higher amount of water extractable solid than the unsteamed white ginseng, but the variation of crude saponin content was not distinctive depending on processing methods. The contents of total ginsenosides increased by the order of white, taegeuk, red A, and red B root. In summary, chemical composition and total ginsenoside content were different according to part of root and processing methods, thus implies the importance of quality control as well as pharmacological activity of ginseng root.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.218-232
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• 1986

In this review quality improvement, new products and processing of ginseng are discussed. Ginseng products are generally classified into two types; the dried product without significant change in original shape of fresh ginseng and various processed ginseng products in liquid or solid types prepared by addition of either ginseng extract of ground powder. The dried ginsengs are generally made 4 years old fresh ginseng roots for production of white ginseng and 6 years old ones for red ginseng. The processed ginseng products, such as ginseng drinks, extracts, teas, powders, capsules or tablets are prepared by addition of extract or powder of the ginseng roots which contain relatively high amount of saponin. At present, more than 200 items of 40 types of products are commercially available in over 70 countries in the world, Since consummers preference on the quality of ginseng products as an health food differs with their cultural background of each country, new products development and quality improvement should be investigated with concerning the particular preference of the consummers of various country. It has been generally found that the Orientals has higher product acceptance on strong ginseng flavor while the Westerners generally prefers the products having mild ginseng odor and taste. Recently consummers are asking for supplemented type of ginseng products with various medical herbs and vital materials instead of ginseng alone. Therefore future work on product development should be emphasized to meet the consummers demand and preference.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.229-233
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• 2006

Comparison of the grade of raw ginseng and that of red ginseng was investigated. The materials used in this study were Korean ginseng (Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer) and American ginseng(Panax quinquefolium L.) Coefficient of body term, length of main stem and weight of raw ginseng were used as the classifying criteria of the root size and grades. Korean ginseng distinguished the distribution of weight size from that of American ginseng. Korean ginseng distributed largely in middle and large root size, and American ginseng distributed largely in middle and small root size. American ginseng had shorter length of main root, bigger diameter of main root and more number of adventitious roots than Korean ginseng. The quality of Korean ginseng was better than that of American ginseng. In Korean ginseng, high quality of red ginseng above second grade (Jisam) was obtained, but low quality of red ginseng under third grade (Yangsam) in American ginseng. In Korean raw ginseng, the coefficients of body form of middle weight and large weight size were under 0.5, but those of American ginseng was over 0.5. So American ginseng were not adequate to produce good red ginseng. Those factors as length of main root and weight of main root were not significantly influenced on the qualify of red ginseng in both Korean ginseng and American ginseng. Coefficient of body form was leading factor affecting the quality of red ginseng. To improve the quality of red ginseng, coefficient of body form, weight of main root and length of main root were controlled adequately in both Korean ginseng and American ginseng.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.94-104
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• 2015

Background: Ginseng (Panax ginseng Meyer) is an important medicinal herbs in Asia. However, ginseng varieties are less developed. Method: To developed ginseng varieties, a pure line selection method was applied in this study. Results: Gumpoong was testing of 4-yr-old specimens in 2002, the proportions of the below-ground roots that were rusty colored for Gumpoong was 1.29 in Daejeon and 1.45 in Eumseong, whereas the proportions for its yellow berry variant were 2.60 and 2.45 in the two regions, respectively. Thus the Gumpoong was resistant to root rust. Sunpoong has a high yielding property. Its average root weight is 70.6 g for 6-yr-old roots. Its yield is 2.9 kg/$1.62m^2$ and the rate of heaven- and earth-grade product is 20.9%, which is very high compared to 9.4% for Yunpoong. Sunone is resistance to root rot and the survival rate of 4-yr-old roots was 44.4% in 1997, whereas that of the violet-stem variant landrace was 21.7%. Sunhyang has content of arginyl-fructosyl-glucose (AFG), which produces the unique scent of red ginseng, is $95.1{\mu}mol/g$ and greater than the $30.8{\mu}mol/g$ of Chunpoong in 6-yr-old plants. Sunun and Cheongsun are being nurtured to protect genetic resources. Conclusion: Developed ginsneg varieties will be used as the basis for the protection of genetic resources and breeding.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.132-136
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• 2006

This study was carried out to study the effect of emergence type of multiple stem and main bud on the quality of fresh and red ginseng in Korean ginseng. To achieve the aim of this study, characteristics of roots and quality factors were investigated. Single stem plants were 62.9% of the total samples, and the remainder(37.1%) were multiple stem plants. The number of stems affected considerably on root weight. Root weight of triple stem type with triple main bud was the largest among the types. As the number of stem per plant increased, the root quality became worse. In both single and multiple stem, the more the number of main buds was, the lower the quality grade was. Yield of the red ginseng was about 30%, showing little difference between single stem and multiple stem plant. As the number of stem increased, yield of Bonsam decreased. The quality grade of red ginseng of single stem was better than that of multiple stem. Multiple stem plant produced relatively more Yangsam and Japsam. As the number of main bud increased, the quality grade of ginseng decreased.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.27-37
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• 2019

Background: The structural conversions in ginsenosides induced by steaming or heating or acidic condition could improve red ginseng bioactivities significantly. In this paper, the chemical transformations of red American ginseng from fresh Panax quinquefolium L. under steaming were investigated, and the possible mechanisms were discussed. Methods: A method with reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with linear ion trap mass spectrometry ($HPLC-MS^n$)-equipped electrospray ionization ion source was developed for structural analysis and quantitation of ginsenosides in dried and red American ginseng. Results: In total, 59 ginsenosides of protopanaxadiol, protopanaxatriol, oleanane, and ocotillol types were identified in American ginseng before and after steaming process by matching the molecular weight and/or comparing $MS^n$ fragmentation with that of standards and/or known published compounds, and some of them were determined to be disappeared or newly generated under different steaming time and temperature. The specific fragments of each aglycone-type ginsenosides were determined as well as aglycone hydrated and dehydrated ones. The mechanisms were deduced as hydrolysis, hydration, dehydration, and isomerization of neutral and acidic ginsenosides. Furthermore, the relative peak areas of detected compounds were calculated based on peak areas ratio. Conclusion: The multicomponent assessment of American ginseng was conducted by $HPLC-MS^n$. The result is expected to provide possibility for holistic evaluation of the processing procedures of red American ginseng and a scientific basis for the usage of American ginseng in prescription.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.33 no.s01
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• pp.115-123
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• 1988

Ginseng has been used as a medicinal herb in the world for more than two thousand years. Inspection of the quality of ginseng was made since many hundred years ago. Ginseng quality has been graded by several methodes, based on saponin contents, number of ginsenosides, shape of root and tissue elaborateness. In present. ginseng products are usually evaluated by saponin contents and number of ginsenosides. On the other hand, fresh and manufactured ginseng roots such as red. white and semi-red ginseng, Taegeuk Sam, are mostly graded by root shape such as root development and skin (epidermis) color, and tissue elaborateness. which is a conventional grading method. However, the root shape grading method has a risk of overlooking real medicinal properties of ginseng. So. both the medicinal ingredients and the conventional grading method should be considered for the proper evaluation of ginseng quality. Therefore, for the establishment of better method in evaluating ginseng quality, the relationships of root shape and useful components are required to be studied.