Conjugation of Ginsenoside with Dietary Amino Acids

Ginseng is widely used as an herbal medicine, functional food and food additive and has been shown to benefit health in many ways. For example, AD-1 (Figure 1) is a novel ginsenoside isolated from ginseng that displays cytotoxicity against tumor cells by triggering apoptosis and regulating the expression of related proteins. In addition, recent studies have shown that AD-1 modulates c-FLIP pathway-mediated NF-κB activation, thereby displaying hepatoprotective effects and reversal of activated HSCs. However, the hepatoprotective effects of AD-1 need to be improved.

Fig. 1 Chemical structures of AD-1

When amino acid groups are introduced into insoluble compounds, they increase selectivity, permeability and solubility and reduce toxicity. In addition, branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) can have efficacy in reversing liver fibrosis by reducing oxidative stress and inhibiting the expression of profibrogenic mediators TGF-β1 and IL-6. It has been proved that amino acids can be combined with AD-1 to suppress cell proliferation and induce apoptosis in activated hepatic stellate cells. The basic structure of AD-1 and conjugate is in figure 2 (a). When R1=Phe, R2=H, the conjugation structure is more potent than AD-1 in prevention or improvement of liver fibrosis.

Fig. 2 Structures of AD-1 and Conjugate

Alfa Chemistry specializes in providing high-quality ginseng extracts, ginsenosides and multicomponent rare ginsenosides, and we are always available to answer the questions you may have during the R&D and production process. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you are in need of assistance.

Please kindly note that our products and services are for research use only.