Roles and Mechanisms of Ginsenoside in Cardiovascular Diseases

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are a group of disorders of the heart and blood vessels and include coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, rheumatic heart disease and other conditions, which are the leading cause of death globally.

Ginsenoside is a glycoside formed by removal of a water molecule from the hemiacetal hydroxyl of a sugar molecule and a hydroxyl from non-carbohydrate compounds, and it is one of the main active ingredients of more than 50 saponin monomers that affect metabolism, immunity, antioxidant, endocrine and central nervous system, and can be used for the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular diseases ^[1]. Ginsenoside can exhibit a wide range of activities in CVD by inhibiting ROS (reactive oxygen species) production, stimulating NO (nitric oxide) production, improving blood circulation, enhancing vasodilatory tone, and modulating lipid profile. Figure 1 summarizes the putative mechanisms underlying cardiovascular protective effects of ginsenosides.

Fig. 1 Putative mechanisms underlying cardiovascular protective effects of ginsenosides

In addition to the effects shown in Figure 1, ginsenosides have shown protective effects against cardiotoxicity during cardiac surgery. Ginsenoside pretreatment improves survival from local anesthetic-induced cardiotoxicity; Ginsenoside mixtures have been reported to reduce gastrointestinal mucosal damage and inflammation induced by treatment of congenital heart disease in children; In addition, in vitro studies have shown that the combination of aconite and ginseng attenuates its toxicity to cardiomyocytes.

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