Ginseng Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Ginseng, including details on american ginseng, panax, benefits, side effects.

Polyacetylenic compounds, ACAT inhibitors from the roots of Panax ginseng.

Rho MC, Lee HS, Lee SW, Chang JS, Kwon OE, Chung MY, Kim YK

Laboratory of Lipid Metabolism, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, 52 Eoundong, Yusong-gu, Taejon 305-333, Korea.

Acyl-CoA: cholesterol acyltransferase (ACAT), which plays a role in the absorption, storage, and production of cholesterol, has been explored as a potential target for pharmacological intervention of hyperlipidemia and atherosclerotic disease. In our search for ACAT inhibitors from natural sources, the petroleum ether extract of Panax ginseng showed moderate inhibition of ACAT enzyme from rat liver microsomes. Bioactivity-guided fractionations led to the isolation of one new polyacetylenic compound, (9R,10S)-epoxy-16-heptadecene-4, 6-diyne-3-one (1), in addition to the previously reported polyacetylenic compounds 2 and 3. Their chemical structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic evidence (UV, IR, NMR, and MS). The compounds 1, 2, and 3 showed significant ACAT inhibition with IC(50) values of 35, 47, and 21 microM, respectively.

Published 16 February 2005 in J Agric Food Chem, 53(4): 919-22.
Full-text of this article is available online (may require subscription).

© 2004-2008 Ginseng Research Today. All Rights Reserved.