Glycoprotein Isolated from Acanthopanax senticosus Protects against Hepatotoxicity Induced by Acute and Chronic Alcohol Treatment

Abstract

Acanthopanax senticosus (A. senticosus) is a common Asian herb known as "Siberian Ginseng" or "Eleutherococcus senticosus" 1) and used for rheumatism and prophylaxis of various diseases including chronic bronchitis, hypertension, and ischemia. The herb has also been known to effectively relieve stress or fatigue, and symptoms associated with diabetes, neuralgia, and cancer. 2,3) Today this oriental herb is called "adatogen" in the U.S.4) The major active components of A. senticosus are acanthoside, eleutheroside, chiisanoside, senticoside, triterpenic saponin, syringin, flavone, vitamin, minerals, b-sitosterol, sesamine and savinine. 4,5) Each chemical compound is known to produce diverse biological activities. In Korea, the extract of the A. senticosus plant is used a component in traditional herbal Korean medicine, and is available as a functional beverage commercially marketed for reducing liver damage and accelerating alcohol detoxification. The efficacy of A. senticosus in animal modes and the mechanisms underlying the aforementioned physiological properties involved in alcohol metabolism is unclear, and is therefore the purpose of this investigation.As much as 80-90% of ingested alcohol is metabolized in the liver, where alcohol is oxidized to acetadehyde. [6][7][8] The process is catalyzed by 3 different enzymes: alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), microsomal ethanol metabolizing system (MEOS), and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH). Since acetaldehyde is much more toxic than alcohol, it is associated with a larger number of the metabolic abnormalities in liver disease induced by alcohol.9,10) Under normal conditions, acetaldehyde is rapidly converted to acetate by ADH, and therefore very low level of acetaldehyde should remain in the liver tissue or blood. ALDH also plays an important role in the elimination of acetaldehyde through oxidative reactions.11) Therefore, the severity of liver diseases can be proportional to reductions in ADH or ALDH activities. 2,12) Development of fatty liver and hyperlipidemia frequently occurs in chronic alcoholics; mainly because ethanol becomes a preferred fuel for the liver and displaces fat as a source of energy, which results in fat accumulation. Furthermore, the redox state secondary to ethanol oxidation is altered, promotings lipogenesis through increasing a-glycerophosphate and acylglycerols. The depressed oxidative capacity of mitochondria caused by chronic alcohol also contributes to fatty liver. Increasing fat accumulations in the liver can also stimulate secretion of lipoproteins into the bloodstream, facilitating the development of hyperlipidemia. Acetyl CoA carboxylase (ACC) is an enzyme that catalyzes the first step in fatty acids biosynthesis and is a rate-limiting enzyme in lipogenesis.5,13) Moreover, malic enzyme (ME), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH), and 6-phosphoglucuronic acid dehydrogenase (6-PGDH) are also involved in lipogenesis by supplying NADPH, an essential cofactor for fatty acids and cholesterol biosynthesis. Alcohol has also been suggested ...

Retraction: Asiatic Acid from <i>Potentilla chinensis</i> Attenuate Ethanol-Induced Hepatic Injury <i>via</i> Suppression of Oxidative Stress and Kupffer Cell Activation

“…This result is consistent with the previous study. 28) Interestingly, these metabolism-specific enzymes were effectively increased by AAPC treatment. These data suggest that AAPC-mediated alcohol metabolism was associated with enhanced ADH and ALDH activities.…”

Effects ofPhellinus spp. Extract on Alcohol Metabolic Enzymes in Alcohol-treated Rats

“…Silymarin , a Decalepis hamiltonii's root (Srivastava and Shivanandappa, 2006), and glycoproteins from Acanthopanax senticosus (Choi et al, 2006) have Here, therefore, I report the protective effect of Phellinus spp. extract against alcohol-induced liver disease.…”

Animal Model Analysis based on the Characteristics of Clinical Symptoms of Alcoholic Hepatic Injury

“…②The clinical symptoms were nonspecific,asymptomatic or have abdominal pain, loss of appetite, fatigue, weight loss,jaundice. ③Serum AST, ALT, Y-GT, total bilirubin, prothrombin time and average hematocrit (MCV) were elevated [5], hyaluronic acid (HA) and endothelin (ET) index increased.…”