Improved Inflammatory Balance of Human Skeletal Muscle during Exercise after Supplementations of the Ginseng-Based Steroid Rg1

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to determine the effect of ginseng-based steroid Rg1 on TNF-alpha and IL-10 gene expression in human skeletal muscle against exercise challenge, as well as on its ergogenic outcomes. Randomized double-blind placebo-controlled crossover trials were performed, separated by a 4-week washout. Healthy young men were randomized into two groups and received capsule containing either 5 mg of Rg1 or Placebo one night and one hour before exercise. Muscle biopsies were conducted at baseline, immediately and 3 h after a standardized 60-min cycle ergometer exercise. While treatment differences in glycogen depletion rate of biopsied quadriceps muscle during exercise did not reach statistical significance, Rg1 supplementations enhanced post-exercise glycogen replenishment and increased citrate synthase activity in the skeletal muscle 3 h after exercise, concurrent with improved meal tolerance during recovery (P<0.05). Rg1 suppressed the exercise-induced increases in thiobarbituric acids reactive substance (TBARS) and reversed the increased TNF-alpha and decreased IL-10 mRNA of quadriceps muscle against the exercise challenge. PGC-1 alpha and GLUT4 mRNAs of exercised muscle were not affected by Rg1. Maximal aerobic capacity (VO2max) was not changed by Rg1. However, cycling time to exhaustion at 80% VO2max increased significantly by ~20% (P<0.05). Conclusion: Our result suggests that Rg1 is an ergogenic component of ginseng, which can minimize unwanted lipid peroxidation of exercised human skeletal muscle, and attenuate pro-inflammatory shift under exercise challenge.

Six week swimming followed by acute uptakes of ginsenoside Rg1 may affect aerobic capacity of SD rats

“…CS activity has been used as a biomarker representing the mitochondrial capacity and naturally representative of the capacity for endurance exercise of the skeletal muscle caused by long-term endurance exercise in both animals and humans. In a previous study targeting human, Rg1 (capsule 5mg) isolated from Panax Notoginseng was treated two times, one hour before cycling and the previous night, and then the CS activity was shown to be elevated in the blood in three hours after cycling [ 8 ]. However, in this study, which measured the CS activity in the plantaris muscle tissue, ERG showed the highest activity, but it was lower than the activity shown in previous studies [ 12 , 19 ], and there was no significant difference between treatments.…”

“…This name refers to a glycoside isolated from ginseng, which distinguishes it from saponin and from other plants. There are close to 60 species of ginsenosides [ 20 ], and of those ginsenosides, Rg1 belongs to the PT (protopanaxtriol) class and is one of the typical ginsenosides abundant in Panax Ginseng [ 8 ].…”

“…Furthermore, previous studies reported that it is difficult to draw any clear conclusion on the relationship between ginseng and improvement of exercise capacity [ 7 ]. The main limitations for the clinical study are harvest time, and varietal species caused by varying cultivation, which leads to frequently changing profiles of ginsenosides [ 8 ].…”

“…No positive effect of long-term treatment with Rg1 in human muscle strength and anaerobic power has been observed, though there were positive effects on antioxidant enzymes, immune responses, and VO 2max [ 8 , 15 , 24 , 25 ]. In addition, the activity of citrate synthase (CS), which is a typical aerobic enzyme used as an indicator of mitochondrial function, increased [ 8 ]. It is thought to be very difficult to make a clear conclusion of improved aerobic capacity based on the changes of only one indicator enzyme.…”

A Systematic Review on the Effects of Botanicals on Skeletal Muscle Health in Order to Prevent Sarcopenia

“…As shown in the study by Yu et al [ 10 ], Dammarane steroids (DS) of Panax ginseng produce anti-inflammatory effects in rats, following muscle damage exercise, because they potentiate inflammation at baseline but exerted anti-inflammatory effects on skeletal muscle following muscle-damaging exercise. Another study has also highlighted the effect of steroid Rg1 (capsule with 5 mg of Rg1), an ergogenic component of ginseng, in healthy human against exercise challenge: the extract can minimize unwanted lipid peroxidation and attenuate proinflammatory shift under exercise challenge and so it ameliorates the postexercise recovery and mitochondria enzyme adaptation probably because the incorporation of the bulky steroid moiety of Rg1 into cellular membrane lipid may enhance molecular complexity and mechanical stability of the cell and mitochondrial membranes [ 17 ]. Panax notoginseng , as shown by Pumpa et al, seems to have no particular effects on interleukins, indicators of inflammation and muscle damage, in well-trained males after a bout of eccentric exercise designed to induce delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) (in the experiment, 400 mg of Panax notoginseng was used) [ 55 ].…”