Inhibition of inflammations and macrophage activation by ginsenoside-Re isolated from Korean ginseng (Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer)

This study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of ginsenoside-Re (Gin-Re) isolated from roots of Panax ginseng on carrageenan-induced paw and TPA-induced skin inflammations in experimental mice. Moreover, to confirm further the anti-inflammatory activities of Gin-Re, LPS-induced macrophage activation model was also used. Exposure of TPA on the ear of BALB/c mice caused a marked increase in both ear thickness and skin water content. Gin-Re caused significant decrease in ear thickness and subsequently reduced the water content compared to only TPA treated group (p<0.05). Furthermore, histological analysis clearly confirmed that Gin-Re inhibited the inflammatory responses of skin inflammation in animal model. Gin-Re was responded well in inhibiting paw thickness, MDA level and also NO level in carrageenan induced paw edema model compared to only carrageenan treated group. Treatment with Gin-Re inhibited secretion levels of inflammatory mediators such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha), and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta) in LPS-stimulated murine macrophage Raw 264.7 cells. Despite the fact that Gin-Re has weaker anti-inflammatory potential than the positive controls, indomethacin and hydrocortisone, in the entire group tested, quite effective anti-inflammatory activity was shown by Gin-Re, which could be helpful to develop medicinal preparations for various inflammatory diseases. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.