Antimicrobial activities of Asian ginseng, American ginseng, and notoginseng

Abstract

Asian ginseng (Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer), American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) and notoginseng (Panax notoginseng) are the three most commonly used ginseng botanicals in the world. With the increasing interests on antimicrobial properties of plants, the antimicrobial activities of ginseng species have been investigated by a number of researchers worldwide. This overview interprets our present knowledge of the antimicrobial activities of the three ginseng species and some of their bioactive components against pathogenic bacteria (Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Helicobacter pylori, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Propionibacterium acnes, et al.) and fungi (Candida albicans, Fusarium oxysporum, et al). Ginsenosides, polysaccharides, essential oil, proteins, and panaxytriol are all might responsible for the antimicrobial activities of ginseng. The antimicrobial mechanisms of ginseng components could be summarized to the following points: (a) inhibit the microbial motility and quorum-sensing ability; (b) affect the formation of biofilms and destroy the mature biofilms, which can weaken the infection ability of the microbes; (c) perturb membrane lipid bilayers, thus causing the formation of pores, leakages of cell constituents and eventually cell death; (d) stimulate of the immune system and attenuate microbes induced apoptosis, inflammation, and DNA damages, which can protect or help the host fight against microbial infections; and (e) inhibit the efflux of antibiotics that can descend the drug resistance of the microbial. The collected information might facilitate and guide further studies needed to optimize the use of ginseng and their components to improve microbial food safety and prevent or treat animal and human infections.

Ginsenoside Prolongs the Lifespan of C. elegans via Lipid Metabolism and Activating the Stress Response Signaling Pathway

“…Previous studies showed that the metabolism of OP50 influences the lifespan of C. elegans and that ginsenosides possess antibacterial effects [19][20][21]. Live OP50 was used in all the experiments.…”

Dietary Derived Micronutrients Modulate Immune Responses Through Innate Lymphoid Cells

“…Indeed, curcumin has been reported to recruit activated NK cells to glioblastoma stem cells and eliminate the tumor cells in a mouse model ( 76 ). Asian ginseng, one of the most widely used herbs globally, has also been extensively investigated for its antimicrobial and anticancer capabilities ( 77 ). One group reported that ginseng extracts rely on the IFN- γ pathway to promote NK cell cytotoxic activity, while ginsenoside itself hardly showed any NK cell-promoting ability ( 78 ).…”

Biofunctional characterization of red, black and white ginseng (Panax ginseng Meyer) root extracts

“…Ginseng can repress the synthesis of protease and elastase enzyme efficacy; so, inhibited the pathogenesis mechanism of bacteria (Dhama et al, 2014). Recently, it was stated by Wang et al (2020) that numerous phytoconstituents are responsible for antimicrobial activities of ginseng. These components in various plants inhibit microbial movement, biofilm formation and maturation, disturb lipid bilayers to create pores, efflux of cell metabolites, and ultimately destroy the cells.…”