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The Agrobacterium-based transgenic technique is commonly used for gene function validation and molecular breeding. However, it is not suitable for plants with a low regeneration capacity or a low transformation rate, such as Panax notoginseng (Burk) F.H. Chen and Lilium regale Wilson. In this study, a novel Agrobacterium transformation method based on injection in the meristems was developed using P. notoginseng and L. regale as experimental models. PCR analysis confirmed the successful integration of the reporter gene DsRed2 (Discosoma striata red fluorescence protein 2) into the genome of two experimental models. QRT-PCR and Western blot analysis demonstrated the transcriptional and translational expression of DsRed2. Additionally, laser confocal microscopy confirmed the significant accumulation of the red fluorescent protein in the leaves, stems, and roots of transformed P. notoginseng and L. regale. Most importantly, in the second year after injection, the specific bright orange fluorescence from DsRed2 expression was observed in the transgenic P. notoginseng and L. regale plants. This study establishes a fast, efficient, and tissue-culture-independent transgenic technique suitable for plants with a low regeneration capacity or a low transformation rate. This technique may improve the functional genomics of important medicinal and ornamental plants such as P. notoginseng and L. regale, as well as their molecular breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng is a highly valued perennial medicinal herb in China and is widely used in clinical treatments. The main purpose of this study was to elucidate the changes in the composition of P. notoginseng saponins (PNSs), which are the main bioactive substances, triggered by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) via ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization–tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC–ESI–MS/MS). A total of 202 putative terpenoid metabolites were detected, of which 150 triterpene glycosides were identified, accounting for 74.26% of the total. Correlation analysis, principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS–DA) of the metabolites revealed that the samples treated with AMF (group Ce) could be clearly separated from the CK samples. In total, 49 differential terpene metabolites were identified between the Ce and CK groups, of which 38 and 11 metabolites were upregulated and downregulated, respectively, and most of the upregulated differentially abundant metabolites were mainly triterpene glycosides. The relative abundances of the two major notoginsenosides (MNs), ginsenosides Rd and Re, and 13 rare notoginsenosides (RNs), significantly increased. The differential saponins, especially RNs, were more easily clustered into one branch and had a high positive correlation. It could be concluded that the biosynthesis and accumulation of some RNs share the same pathways as those triggered by AMF. This study provides a new way to obtain more notoginsenoside resources, particularly RNs, and sheds new light on the scientization and rationalization of the use of AMF agents in the ecological planting of medicinal plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng is a perennial plant well known for its versatile medicinal properties, including hepatoprotective, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, estrogen-like, and antidepressant characteristics. It has been reported that plant age affects the quality of P. notoginseng. This study aimed to explore the differential metabolome and transcriptome of 2-year (PN2) and 3-year-old (PN3) P. notoginseng plant root samples. Principal component analysis of metabolome and transcriptome data revealed major differences between the two groups (PN2 vs. PN3). A total of 1813 metabolites and 28,587 genes were detected in this study, of which 255 metabolites and 3141 genes were found to be differential (p < 0.05) between PN2 vs. PN3, respectively. Among differential metabolites and genes, 155 metabolites and 1217 genes were up-regulated, while 100 metabolites and 1924 genes were down-regulated. The KEGG pathway analysis revealed differentially enriched metabolites belonging to class lipids ("13S-hydroperoxy-9Z, 11E-octadecadionic acid", "9S-hydroxy-10E, 12Z-octadecadionic acid", "9S-oxo-10E, 12Z-octadecadionic acid", and "9,10,13-trihydroxy-11-octadecadionic acid"), nucleotides and derivatives (guanine and cytidine), and phenolic acids (chlorogenic acid) were found to be enriched (p < 0.05) in PN3 compared to PN2. Further, these differentially enriched metabolites were found to be significantly (p < 0.05) regulated via linoleic acid metabolism, nucleotide metabolism, plant hormone signal transduction, and arachidonic acid metabolism pathways. Furthermore, the transcriptome analysis showed the up-regulation of key genes MAT, DMAS, SDH, gallate 1-beta-glucosyltransferase, and beta-D-glucosidase in various plants' secondary metabolic pathways and SAUR, GID1, PP2C, ETR, CTR1, EBF1/2, and ERF1/2 genes observed in phytohormone signal transduction pathway that is involved in plant growth and development, and protection against the various stressors. This study concluded that the roots of a 3-year-old P. notoginseng plant have better metabolome and transcriptome profiles compared to a 2-year-old plant with importantly enriched metabolites and genes in pathways related to metabolism, plant hormone signal transduction, and various biological processes. These findings provide insights into the plant's dynamic biochemical and molecular changes during its growth that have several implications regarding its therapeutic use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng is a highly regarded medicinal plant that has obstacles associated with continuous cropping. Understanding soil microorganisms is crucial, as they play a major role in this regard. However, soil microorganisms are affected by multiple factors; therefore, we need to conduct more in-depth research. This study investigated the combined effects of irrigation and microbial fertilizer treatments (J1F1, J1F2, J2F1, J2F2, J3F1, J3F2, and CK) on the diversity of bacterial and fungal microbial communities in the rhizosphere of Panax notoginseng. The bacterial 16S rRNA genes and fungal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences were sequenced using Illumina HiSeq. The results showed that, without microbial fertilizer (CK), the microbial community abundance and diversity were significantly lower than in the other treatments; moreover, among the microbial fertilizer treatments, the microbial abundance in F1 was higher than that in F2. Under the same microbial fertilizer application, the incidence rate of Panax notoginseng root rot was J2 > J1 > J3, and the yield of Panax notoginseng was J3 > J2 > J1. Under the same irrigation conditions, the incidence rate of Panax notoginseng root rot was F1 > F2, and the yield of Panax notoginseng was F2 > F1. This study provides important guidance for Panax notoginseng plant microbiota and sustainable agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cimicifuga racemosa (CR) extracts contain diverse constituents such as saponins. These saponins, which act as a defense against herbivores and pathogens also show promise in treating human conditions such as heart failure, pain, hypercholesterolemia, cancer, and inflammation. Some of these effects are mediated by activating AMP-dependent protein kinase (AMPK). Therefore, comprehensive screening for activating constituents in a CR extract is highly desirable. Employing machine learning (ML) techniques such as Deep Neural Networks (DNN), Logistic Regression Classification (LRC), and Random Forest Classification (RFC) with molecular fingerprint MACCS descriptors, 95 CR constituents were classified. Calibration involved 50 randomly chosen positive and negative controls. LRC achieved the highest overall test accuracy (90.2%), but DNN and RFC surpassed it in precision, sensitivity, specificity, and ROC AUC. All CR constituents were predicted as activators, except for three non-triterpene compounds. The validity of these classifications was supported by good calibration, with misclassifications ranging from 3% to 17% across the various models. High sensitivity (84.5–87.2%) and specificity (84.1–91.4%) suggest suitability for screening. The results demonstrate the potential of triterpene saponins and aglycones in activating AMP-dependent protein kinase (AMPK), providing the rationale for further clinical exploration of CR extracts in metabolic pathway-related conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng (P. notoginseng) is a valuable herbal medicine, as well as a dietary food supplement known for its satisfactory clinical efficacy in alleviating blood stasis, reducing swelling, and relieving pain. However, the ability of P. notoginseng to absorb and accumulate cadmium (Cd) poses a significant environmental pollution risk and potential health hazards to humans. In this study, we employed laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) for the rapid detection of Cd. It is important to note that signal uncertainty can impact the quantification performance of LIBS. Hence, we proposed the crater–spectrum feature fusion method, which comprises ablation crater morphology compensation and characteristic peak ratio correction (CPRC), to explore the feasibility of signal uncertainty reduction. The crater morphology compensation method, namely, adding variables using multiple linear regression (MLR) analysis, decreased the root-mean-square error of the prediction set (RMSEP) from 7.0233 μg/g to 5.4043 μg/g. The prediction results were achieved after CPRC pretreatment using the calibration curve model with an RMSEP of 3.4980 μg/g, a limit of detection of 1.92 μg/g, and a limit of quantification of 6.41 μg/g. The crater–spectrum feature fusion method reached the lowest RMSEP of 2.8556 μg/g, based on a least-squares support vector machine (LSSVM) model. The preliminary results suggest the effectiveness of the crater–spectrum feature fusion method for detecting Cd. Furthermore, this method has the potential to be extended to detect other toxic metals in addition to Cd, which significantly contributes to ensuring the quality and safety of agricultural production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the continuous cropping of Panax notoginseng, the pathogenic fungi in the rhizosphere soil increased and infected the roots of Panax notoginseng, resulting in a decrease in yield. This is an urgent problem that needs to be solved in order to effectively overcome the obstacles associated with the continuous cropping of Panax notoginseng. Previous studies have shown that Bacillus subtilis inhibits pathogenic fungi in the rhizosphere of Panax notoginseng, but the inhibitory effect was not stable. Therefore, we hope to introduce biochar to help Bacillus subtilis colonize in soil. In the experiment, fields planted with Panax notoginseng for 5 years were renovated, and biochar was mixed in at the same time. The applied amount of biochar was set to four levels (B0, 10 kg·hm−2; B1, 80 kg·hm−2; B2, 110 kg·hm−2; B3, 140 kg·hm−2), and Bacillus subtilis biological agent was set to three levels (C1, 10 kg·hm−2; C2, 15 kg·hm−2; C3, 25 kg·hm−2). The full combination experiment and a blank control group (CK) were used. The experimental results show that the overall Ascomycota decreased by 0.86%~65.68% at the phylum level. Basidiomycota increased by −73.81%~138.47%, and Mortierellomycota increased by −51.27%~403.20%. At the genus level, Mortierella increased by −10.29%~855.44%, Fusarium decreased by 35.02%~86.79%, and Ilyonectria increased by −93.60%~680.62%. Fusarium mainly causes acute bacterial wilt root rot, while Ilyonectria mainly causes yellow rot. Under different treatments, the Shannon index increased by −6.77%~62.18%, the Chao1 index increased by −12.07%~95.77%, the Simpson index increased by −7.31%~14.98%, and the ACE index increased by −11.75%~96.12%. The good_coverage indices were all above 0.99. The results of a random forest analysis indicated that Ilyonectria, Pyrenochaeta, and Xenopolyscytalum were the top three most important species in the soil, with MeanDecreaseGini values of 2.70, 2.50, and 2.45, respectively. Fusarium, the primary pathogen of Panax notoginseng, ranked fifth, and its MeanDecreaseGini value was 2.28. The experimental results showed that the B2C2 treatment had the best inhibitory effect on Fusarium, and the relative abundance of Fusarium in Panax notoginseng rhizosphere soil decreased by 86.79% under B2C2 treatment; the B1C2 treatment had the best inhibitory effect on Ilyonectria, and the relative abundance of Ilyonectria in the Panax notoginseng rhizosphere soil decreased by 93.60% under B1C2 treatment. Therefore, if we want to improve the soil with acute Ralstonia solanacearum root rot, we should use the B2C2 treatment to improve the soil environment; if we want to improve the soil with yellow rot disease, we should use the B1C2 treatment to improve the soil environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng (Sanqi) is a precious traditional Chinese medicine that is commonly cultivated using conventional management methods in agricultural systems in Yunnan, China, where it faces the challenge of continuous cropping obstacles (CCOs). However, the existence of Sanqi CCOs in Sanqi–pine agroforestry systems remains unclear. Here, we applied three types of exogenous organic acids (phthalic acid, palmitic acid, and phthalic + palmitic mixed organic acids) mainly derived from the root exudates of Sanqi to simulate the CCOs; then, we compared the effects on plant growth, soil physicochemical properties, soil microbes, and soil metabolites. We found that organic acid concentrations of >250 mg/kg reduced the fresh weight of Sanqi and the levels of total nitrogen, ammonium nitrogen, soil water content, total phosphorus, and pH value; these concentrations also increased the soil bacterial and fungal α-diversity. The type of organic acid, as opposed to the concentration and duration of treatment, had a vital impact on the structure of the bacterial and fungal community in Sanqi soils. Moreover, the organic acid concentrations of >250 mg/kg also decreased the complexity and stability of the bacterial and fungal network. In addition, the metabolic pathways in the soils under different organic acids included 17 differential metabolites (DMs), which were involved in steroid hormone biosynthesis. The structural equation models (SEMs) revealed that plant growth, soil edaphic factors, and soil metabolites had direct or indirect influences on soil microbial communities under different organic acid conditions. Our results suggest that any phthalic or palmitic acid concentrations at concentrations >250 mg/kg are detrimental to multiple aspects of Sanqi cultivation, confirming the presence of Sanqi CCOs in Sanqi–pine agroforestry systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both the roots and leaves of American ginseng contain ginsenosides and polyphenols. The impact of thermal processing on enhancing the biological activities of the root by altering its component composition has been widely reported. However, the effects of far-infrared irradiation (FIR), an efficient heat treatment method, on the bioactive components of the leaves remain to be elucidated. In the present study, we investigated the effects of FIR heat treatment between 160 and 200 °C on the deglycosylation and dehydration rates of the bioactive components in American ginseng leaves. As the temperature was increased, the amounts of common ginsenosides decreased while those of rare ginsenosides increased. After FIR heat treatment of American ginseng leaves at an optimal 190 °C, the highest total polyphenolic content and kaempferol content were detected, the antioxidant activity was significantly enhanced, and the amounts of the rare ginsenosides F4, Rg6, Rh4, Rk3, Rk1, Rg3, and Rg5 were 41, 5, 37, 64, 222, 17, and 266 times higher than those in untreated leaves, respectively. Moreover, the radical scavenging rates for 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and 2,2′-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) and the reducing power of the treated leaf extracts were 2.17, 1.86, and 1.77 times higher, respectively. Hence, FIR heat treatment at 190 °C is an efficient method for producing beneficial bioactive components from American ginseng leaves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The flower buds of three Panax species (PGF: P. ginseng; PQF: P. quinquefolius; PNF: P. notoginseng) widely consumed as health tea are easily confused in market circulation. We aimed to develop a green, fast, and easy analysis strategy to distinguish PGF, PQF, and PNF. In this work, fast gas chromatography electronic nose (fast GC e-nose), headspace-gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS), and headspace solid phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS) were utilized to comprehensively analyze the volatile organic components (VOCs) of three flowers. Meanwhile, a principal component analysis (PCA) and heatmap were applied to distinguish the VOCs identified in PGF, PQF, and PNF. A random forest (RF) analysis was used to screen key factors affecting the discrimination. As a result, 39, 68, and 78 VOCs were identified in three flowers using fast GC e-nose, HS-GC-IMS, and HS-SPME-GC-MS. Nine VOCs were selected as potential chemical markers based on a model of RF for distinguishing these three species. Conclusively, a complete VOC analysis strategy was created to provide a methodological reference for the rapid, simple, and environmentally friendly detection and identification of food products (tea, oil, honey, etc.) and herbs with flavor characteristics and to provide a basis for further specification of their quality and base sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aralia elata (Miq.) Seem is a medicinal plant that shares a common pathway for the biosynthesis of triterpenoid saponins with Panax ginseng. Here, we transferred the dammarenediol-II synthase gene from P. ginseng (PgDDS; GenBank: AB122080.1) to A. elata. The growth of 2-year-old transgenic plants (L27; 9.63 cm) was significantly decreased compared with wild-type plants (WT; 74.97 cm), and the leaflet shapes and sizes of the transgenic plants differed from those of the WT plants. Based on a terpene metabolome analysis of leaf extracts from WT, L13, and L27 plants, a new structural skeleton for ursane-type triterpenoid saponins was identified. Six upregulated differentially accumulated metabolites (DAMs) were detected, and the average levels of Rg3 and Re in the leaves of the L27 plants were 42.64 and 386.81 μg/g, respectively, increased significantly compared with the WT plants (15.48 and 316.96 μg/g, respectively). Thus, the expression of PgDDS in A. elata improved its medicinal value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cultivation of plant cells in large-scale bioreactor systems has long been considered a promising alternative for the overexploitation of wild plants as a source of bioactive phytochemicals. This idea, however, faced multiple constraints upon realization, resulting in very few examples of technologically feasible and economically effective biotechnological companies. The bioreactor cultivation of plant cells is challenging. Even well-growing and highly biosynthetically potent cell lines require a thorough optimization of cultivation parameters when upscaling the cultivation process from laboratory to industrial volumes. The optimization includes, but is not limited to, the bioreactor's shape and design, cultivation regime (batch, fed-batch, continuous, semi-continuous), aeration, homogenization, anti-foaming measures, etc., while maintaining a high biomass and metabolite production. Based on the literature data and our experience, the cell cultures often demonstrate cell line- or species-specific responses to parameter changes, with the dissolved oxygen concentration (pO2) and shear stress caused by stirring being frequent growth-limiting factors. The mass transfer coefficient also plays a vital role in upscaling the cultivation process from smaller to larger volumes. The Experimental Biotechnological Facility at the K.A. Timiryazev Institute of Plant Physiology has operated since the 1970s and currently hosts a cascade of bioreactors from the laboratory (20 L) to the pilot (75 L) and a semi-industrial volume (630 L) adapted for the cultivation of plant cells. In this review, we discuss the most appealing cases of the cell cultivation process's adaptation to bioreactor conditions featuring the cell cultures of medicinal plants Dioscorea deltoidea Wall. ex Griseb., Taxus wallichiana Zucc., Stephania glabra (Roxb.) Miers, Panax japonicus (T. Nees) C.A.Mey., Polyscias filicifolia (C. Moore ex E. Fourn.) L.H. Bailey, and P. fruticosa L. Harms. The results of cell cultivation in bioreactors of different types and designs using various cultivation regimes are covered and compared with the literature data. We also discuss the role of the critical factors affecting cell behavior in bioreactors with large volumes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng saponins (PNSs) have been used as a nutritional supplement for many years, but their bitter taste limits their application in food formulations. The effects of PNS (groups B, C, and D contained 0.8, 1.0 and 1.2 mg/mL of free PNS, respectively) or Panax notoginseng saponin-polymerized whey protein (PNS-PWP) nanoparticles (groups E, F, and G contained 26.68, 33.35 and 40.03 mg/mL of PNS-PWP nanoparticles, respectively) on the rheological, textural properties and bitterness of yogurt were investigated. Group G yogurt showed a shorter gelation time (23.53 min), the highest elastic modulus (7135 Pa), higher hardness (506 g), higher apparent viscosity, and the lowest syneresis (6.93%) than other groups, which indicated that the yogurt formed a stronger gel structure. The results of the electronic tongue indicated that the bitterness values of group E (−6.12), F (−6.56), and G (−6.27) yogurts were lower than those of group B (−5.12), C (−4.31), and D (−3.79), respectively, which might be attributed to PNS being encapsulated by PWP. The results indicated that PWP-encapsulated PNS could cover the bitterness of PNS and improve the quality of yogurt containing PNS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rhizosphere bacteria Bacillus velezensis GJ-7, as a biological control agent (BCA), has significant biological control effects on Meloidogyne hapla, and has strong colonization ability in the root of Panax notoginseng. In this study, we conducted a comparative transcriptome analysis using P. notoginseng plant roots treated with B. velezensis GJ-7 or sterile water alone and in combination with M. hapla inoculation to explore the interactions involving the P. notoginseng plant, B. velezensis GJ-7, and M. hapla. Four treatments from P. notoginseng roots were sequenced, and twelve high-quality total clean bases were obtained, ranging from 3.57 to 4.74 Gb. The Gene Ontology (GO) classification and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment showed that numerous DEGs are involved in the phenylpropane biosynthesis pathway and the MAPK signaling pathway in the roots of P. notoginseng with B. velezensis GJ-7 treatments. The analysis results of the two signaling pathways indicated that B. velezensis GJ-7 could enhance the expression of lignin- and camalexin-synthesis-related genes in plant roots to resist M. hapla. In addition, B. velezensis GJ-7 could enhance plant resistance to M. hapla by regulating the expression of resistance-related genes and transcription factors (TFs), including ETR, ERF, ChiB, WRKY22, and PR1. The expression of plant disease resistance genes in the roots of P. notoginseng with different treatments was validated by using real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR), and the results were consistent with transcriptome sequencing. Taken together, this study indicated that B. velezensis GJ-7 can trigger a stronger defense response of P. notoginseng against M. hapla. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng (Burk.) F. H. Chen, a species of the genus Panax, radix has been traditionally used to deal with various hematological diseases and cardiovascular diseases since ancient times in East Asia. P. notoginseng produces recalcitrant seeds which are sensitive to desiccation and difficult to store for a long time. However, few data are available on the mechanism of the desiccation sensitivity of P. notoginseng seeds. To gain a comprehensive perspective of the genes associated with desiccation sensitivity, cDNA libraries from seeds under control and desiccation processes were prepared independently for Illumina sequencing. The data generated a total of 70,189,896 reads that were integrated and assembled into 55,097 unigenes with a mean length of 783 bp. In total, 12,025 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified during the desiccation process. Among these DEGs, a number of central metabolism, hormonal network-, fatty acid-, and ascorbate-glutathione-related genes were included. Our data provide a comprehensive resource for identifying the genes associated with the desiccation sensitivity of P. notoginseng seeds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Saponin-rich medicinal plants, particularly ginseng and Pseudo ginseng, are valuable in traditional medical practice due to the presence of different saponins. These plants benefit from natural saponins/triterpenoids drugs, such as Ginsenosides, Gypenosides, Platycodins, and Lancemasides. Ginsenosides are highly required for research and functional materials preparation in industrial practices, and some compounds, like Compound-K, have been taken to human trials for various therapeutic applications. To elucidate the genes/transcripts profiles responsible for secondary metabolites and ginsenoside biosynthesis in Ginseng and Pseudo ginseng plant genomes, a comparative analysis was conducted in this study. Nine plant genomes with a 99% BUSCO completeness score were used, resulting in 49 KEGG secondary metabolite pathways, 571 cytochromes genes with 42 families, and 3529 carbohydrate genes with 103 superfamilies. The comparative analysis revealed 24 genes/transcripts belonging to the CYP716 family, which is involved in the ginsenoside biosynthesis pathway. Additionally, it found that various ginsenosides demonstrated strong binding affinity with twelve targets, with ginsenoside Rg3, Rg2, Rh1, Rh5, F3, Rh9, Panaxadione, Protopanaxatriol, Floral ginsenoside C, and Floral ginsenoside E exhibiting the highest binding affinities with the tested enzymes. Since these groups of enzymes are not yet fully characterized for Pseudo ginseng plants in the interconversion of triterpenoids, this comparative bioinformatics analysis could aid experimentalists in selecting and conducting characterization with practical knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng (Burk.) F.H. Chen is a species of the Araliaceae family that inhabits southwestern China, Burma, and Nepal. It is cultivated on a commercial scale in Yunnan province, China, owing to its significance in traditional Chinese medicine. Panax notoginseng roots are usually yellow-white (HS); however, purple roots (ZS) have also been reported. The majority of P. notoginseng research has concentrated on the identification and production of natural chemicals in HS; however, there is little to no information about the composition of ZS. Using UPLC-MS/MS, we investigated the global metabolome profile of both ZS- and HS-type roots and discovered 834 metabolites from 11 chemical groups. There were 123 differentially accumulated metabolites (DAM) in the HS and ZS roots, which were classified as lipids and lipid-like molecules, polyketides, organoheterocyclic chemicals, and organooxygen compounds. We investigated the associated compounds in the DAMs because of the importance of anthocyanins in color and saponins and ginsenosides in health benefits. In general, we discovered that pigment compounds such as petunidin 3-glucoside, delphinidin 3-glucoside, and peonidin-3-O-beta-galactoside were more abundant in ZS. The saponin (eight compounds) and ginsenoside (26 compounds) content of the two varieties of roots differed as well. Transcriptome sequencing revealed that flavonoid and anthocyanin production genes were more abundant in ZS than in HS. Similarly, we found differences in gene expression in genes involved in terpenoid production and related pathways. Overall, these findings suggest that the purple roots of P. notoginseng contain varying amounts of ginsenosides and anthocyanins compared to roots with a creamy yellow color. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fungal community structure and soil fertility in rhizosphere soil have an important effect on the health of Panax notoginseng (P. notoginseng). The attack of pathogenic fungi and the imbalance of soil fertility can easily lead to diseases. The effect of Bacillus subtilis on improving the community structure of soil fungi has been confirmed, and the corresponding biological agent products have been commercialized. A pot experiment carried out in a greenhouse explored the effect of a biological agent and fertilizer on the fungal community in the rhizosphere of P. notoginseng. In the experiment, fertilization and the addition of biological agents were set up with three gradients, respectively, and the full coupling experiment was adopted, and the blank control group (CK) was set up at the same time. Therefore, there were thirteen treatments in the experiment. NH4 decreased between 36.42% and 11.56%, AP increased between 6.03% and 92.46%, AK increased between 2.99% and 25.40%, TN increased between 0.10% and 9.41%, and TP increased by 18.25% to 47.73% The addition of Bacillus subtilis biological agent decreased the Chao1, Shannon, Simpson, and ACE index of fungi in the rhizosphere soil of P. notoginseng. The Chao1 index decreased between 0.39% and 78.22%; the ACE index decreased between 0.43% and 78.24%. The main pathogenic fungi Cylindrocarpon and Fusarium of P. notoginseng were different in the experimental results. Cylindrocarpon decreased under F1C1, F2C1, and F3C2 treatments, while Fusarium increased under F1C1, F2C2, F3C1, and F3C3 treatments and decreased Fusarium content in rhizosphere soil of P. notoginseng in other treatments. RDA analysis (Redundancy analysis) showed that NH4-N was negatively correlated with the main pathogen Cylindrocarpon, Fusarium, and Ilyonectria, while AP and AK were positively correlated with Cylindrocarpon, Fusarium, and Ilyonectria. The results of the GRA-TOPSIS analysis showed that the score of F3C2 was the highest, while F2C3 and F2C1 ranked second and third, respectively. The calculation results of the theoretical model based on GRA-TOPSIS analysis showed that the GRA-TOPSIS score was highest when the theoretical optimal fertilizer application rate and bacteria application rate were 116.31 kg hm−2 and 15.83 kg hm−2, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cultivation of Panax notoginseng has been plagued by a multitude of challenges, including recurrent diseases, suboptimal value, inadequate quality, and environmental degradation resulting from improper water and fertilizer management. To address these issues and improve the yield of P. notoginseng and its saponin content, this study endeavors to identify the optimal irrigation and fertilization levels in shaded environments in Yunnan Province in Southwest China. In this field experiment, three-year-old plants were tested to evaluate the effects of water, soluble organic fertilizers, and their combinations on plant growth, physiological parameters, yield, and saponin content. The experiment included 12 treatments with three types of irrigation (10 (W1), 15 (W2), and 20 (W3) mm), totaling 440, 660, and 880 mm, and four levels of the total amount of fertilization (F1 (60, total N 12.6, total P 5.5, and total K 10.5 kg ha−1), F2 (90, total N 18.9, total P 8.3, and total K 15.7 kg ha−1), F3 (120, total N 25.2, total P 11.0, and total K 20.9 kg ha−1), F4 (150, total N 31.5, total P 13.8, and total K 26.1 kg ha−1)). The randomized complete block design was used, with 36 plots in total and 3 replications. The study utilized the TOPSIS method to determine the most effective water and fertilizer management strategy for the growth and production of P. notoginseng. The assessment of yield, water and fertilizer productivity, and saponin content across all treatments revealed that the W3F3 treatment resulted in significant increases in the plant's height, stem diameter, and net photosynthetic rate. Meanwhile, the W2F3 treatment exhibited the best root morphological traits. The W3F4 treatment effectively increased dry matter and transpiration. The combination of water and fertilization had a coupling effect that not only increased yield to 1400 kg ha−1 but also improved water–fertilizer productivity. The application of the W2F3 treatment resulted in a significant increase in the accumulation of active components, leading to a total P. notoginseng saponin (PNS) content of 24.94%. Moreover, the comprehensive index obtained through the TOPSIS model indicated that the W2F3 treatment outperformed other treatments. Therefore, this treatment can be considered a promising water and fertilizer model for P. notoginseng cultivation, which can enhance its yield, quality, and productivity while promoting sustainable green development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng (P. notoginseng) has excellent medicinal and food dual-use characteristics. However, P. notoginseng with a unique origin label has become the target of fraud because of people confusing or hiding its origin. In this study, an untargeted nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabolomics approach was used to discriminate the geographical origins of P. notoginseng from four major producing areas in China. Fifty-two components, including various saccharides, amino acids, saponins, organic acids, and alcohols, were identified and quantified through the NMR spectrum, and the area-specific geographical identification components were further screened. P. notoginseng from Yunnan had strong hypoglycemic and cardiovascular protective effects due to its high acetic acid, dopamine, and serine content, while P. notoginseng from Sichuan was more beneficial for diseases of the nervous system because of its high content of fumarate. P. notoginseng from Guizhou and Tibet had high contents of malic acid, notoginsenoside R1, and amino acids. Our results can help to distinguish the geographical origin of P. notoginseng and are readily available for nutritional recommendations in human consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The quality of Panax Linn products available in the market is threatened by adulteration with different Panax species, such as Panax quinquefolium (PQ), Panax ginseng (PG), and Panax notoginseng (PN). In this paper, we established a 2D band-selective heteronuclear single quantum coherence (bs-HSQC) NMR method to discriminate species and detect adulteration of Panax Linn. The method involves selective excitation of the anomeric carbon resonance region of saponins and non-uniform sampling (NUS) to obtain high-resolution spectra in less than 10 min. The combined strategy overcomes the signal overlap limitation in 1H NMR and the long acquisition time in traditional HSQC. The present results showed that twelve well-separated resonance peaks can be assigned in the bs-HSQC spectra, which are of high resolution, good repeatability, and precision. Notably, the identification accuracy of species was found to be 100% for all tests conducted in the present study. Furthermore, in combination with multivariate statistical methods, the proposed method can effectively determine the composition proportion of adulterants (from 10% to 90%). Based on the PLS-DA models, the identification accuracy was greater than 80% when composition proportion of adulterants was 10%. Thus, the proposed method may provide a fast, practical, and effective analysis technique for food quality control or authenticity identification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rhizospheric fungi of medicinal plants are important sources for discovering novel and valuable secondary metabolites with potential pharmaceutical applications. In our research, five new dichlororesorcinols (1–5) and five known metabolites (6–10) were separated from the secondary metabolites of Chaetomium sp. SYP-F6997, which was isolated from the rhizospheric soil of Panax notoginseng. The identification of these compounds was confirmed using various spectroscopic techniques including ESI-MS, UV, IR, NMR and ECD analyses. These findings highlight the potential of rhizospheric fungi as a rich source of novel bioactive compounds. In addition, chiral HPLC was used to successfully separate the enantiomers compound 4 and compound 5, and TDDFT-ECD/optical rotation calculations were used to test their absolute configurations. This is the first report of compounds 1–10 from the genus Chaetomium, and the first report of compounds 1–5 and 7 from the family Chaetomiaceae. We proposed plausible biosynthetic pathways for dichlororesorcinols 1–6 based on their analogous carbon skeleton. These findings provide insights into the biosynthesis of these compounds and expand our understanding of the secondary metabolites produced by Chaetomium sp. SYP-F6997. To evaluate their potential as therapeutic agents, we investigated the cytotoxic activity of all the isolated metabolites against cell lines H9, HL-60, K562, THP-1 and CEM using the MTT method. The new compounds 1 and 2 exhibited significant cytotoxic activities against H9 and CEM, with IC50 values lower than 10 µM. To further explore the potential mechanisms of action, we performed molecular docking studies to investigate the interactions between compounds 1 and 2 with the potential target ERK2. Our results demonstrate that the compounds exhibited strong binding abilities and formed H-bond interactions with ERK2, providing support for their potent antitumor activities and promising potential as lead molecules for the development of antitumor therapeutics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax vietnamensis var. vietnamensis (PVV) and Panax vietnamensis var. fuscidiscus (PVF) both belong to Panax vietnamensis species and are chemically and morphologically similar, making it hard to distinguish for the consumer. Herein, 42 PVF and 12 PVV samples were collected in Quang Nam and Lai Chau Province, respectively, and subsequently characterized by ITSr-DNA sequence data to verify their origins. Next, untargeted metabolomics combined with multivariate statistical analysis was developed to differentiate PVV and PVF. The metabolic profiles of PVV and PVF were found to be distinct and classified well using Partial Least-Squares Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) in the training set. Among them, seven ginsenosides were of high abundance in PVV, while six were of high abundance in PVF. Next, the test set was used to validate 13 putative differential markers found in the training set, illustrating a complete match with the expression patterns of these ginsenosides in the training set. Finally, PLS-DA and linear Support Vector Machine models both indicated distinct ginsenoside profiles of PVV and PVF without misclassification in the test set. Conclusively, the developed untargeted metabolomics approach might serve as a powerful tool for the authentication of PVV and PVF at the metabolome level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to determine the optimal conditions for ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) of Notoginsenoside Fc (Fc) from panax notoginseng leaves. The experiment utilized a Box–Behnken design (BBD) and separation conditions were optimized. The optimum extraction conditions were as follows: extraction time = 1.5 h, ethanol concentration = 86%, liquid-to-solid ratio = 19:1. The experimentally obtained values were in accordance with the values predicted by the RSM model. We determined that the RSM model was able to successfully simulate the optimal extraction of Fc from the leaves. Further, Fc was enriched from Panax notoginseng through nine macroporous resins, and HPD-100 macroporous resins were selected for preliminary enrichment of Fc due to its economic costs and benefits. Subsequently, octadecyl silane (ODS) column chromatography was used to improve the purity of Fc to over 90% after separation by ODS column chromatography. Fc with a purity greater than 95% can be obtained by recrystallization. This is the first study that has focused on the extraction and enrichment of Fc from Panax notoginseng leaves using macroporous resin combined with ODS column chromatography, which provides the possibility for further application of Fc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The panax genus is a widely used medicinal plant with good biological activity. As one of the main active components of the Panax genus, polysaccharides have various pharmacological effects. This review summarizes the latest research reports on ginseng, American ginseng, and Panax notoginseng polysaccharides and compares the differences in extraction, isolation and purification, structural characteristics, and biological activities. The current research mainly focuses on ginseng polysaccharides, and the process of extraction, isolation, and structure analysis of each polysaccharide is roughly the same. Modern pharmacological studies have shown that these polysaccharides have antioxidants, antitumor, immunomodulatory, antidiabetic, intestinal protection, skin repair, and other biological activities. This review provides new insights into the differences between the three kinds of ginseng polysaccharides which will help to further study the medicinal value of ginseng in traditional Chinese medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the accumulation characteristics of heavy metals in the growth process of American ginseng can provide theoretical support for its safe production. In this study, the content of Cu, Mn, As, Pb, Cd, Cr, and Ni in American ginseng (annual, biennial, and triennial) and planting soil were determined using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LCP-MS). In addition, the change in the content of these heavy metals in American ginseng was evaluated after soaking the plant for various time periods. The results indicated that the content of some heavy metals in American ginseng was correlated with soil heavy metal contents. For example, Ni, Cd, and Mn content in American ginseng was significantly negatively correlated with Ni content in soil. American ginseng exhibited distinct heavy metal accumulation characteristics in different parts at different growth stages. For example, in annual American ginseng, Mn and As are mainly enriched in lateral roots and taproots, while in biennial and triennial American ginseng, they are mainly enriched in reed heads. When American ginseng plant was soaked for various time intervals, its heavy metal content changed to varying degrees. In general, after soaking American ginseng for 30 min, the content of most heavy metals decreased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Panax notoginseng@Ag core/shell electrospun fiber membrane was prepared by coaxial electrospinning combined with the UV reduction method (254 nm). The prepared Panax notoginseng@Ag core/shell nanofiber membrane has a three-dimensional structure, and its swelling ratio could reach as high as 199.87%. Traditional Chinese medicine Panax notoginseng can reduce inflammation, and the silver nanoparticles have antibacterial effects, which synergistically promote rapid wound healing. The developed Panax notoginseng@Ag core/shell nanofiber membrane can effectively inhibit the growth of the Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli and the Gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus. The wound healing experiments in Sprague Dawley mice showed that the wound residual area rate of the Panax notoginseng@Ag core/shell electrospun nanofiber membrane group was only 1.52% on day 9, and the wound of this group basically healed on day 12, while the wound residual area rate of the gauze treatment group (control group) was 16.3% and 10.80% on day 9 and day 12, respectively. The wound of the Panax notoginseng@Ag core/shell electrospun nanofiber membrane group healed faster, which contributed to the application of the nanofiber as Chinese medicine rapid wound healing dressings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Panax notoginseng (Burk) F. H. Chen is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine commonly used in clinical applications. This study examined the effects of the Panax notoginseng water extract (PNWE) on the immune responses and digestive enzyme activity of Litopenaeus vannamei (L. vannamei). The results showed that different concentrations of PNWE significantly increased the total haemocyte count, granular haemocytes, emi-granular haemocytes, phenoloxidase and respiratory burst activity, phagocytic ratio, and the phagocytic index of L. vannamei. In addition, PNWE also significantly increased the chymotrypsin, trypsin, and amylase activity of L. vannamei. Additionally, different concentrations of PNWE significantly reduced the Vibrio numbers in the intestine without damaging the hepatopancreas and intestine tissues. These results indicated that PNWE improves the immune responses of L. vannamei by increasing the haemocyte count and regulating intestinal digestive enzymes. Panax notoginseng (Burk) F. H. Chen is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine commonly used in clinical applications. This study examined the effects of the Panax notoginseng water extract (PNWE) on the immune responses and digestive enzyme activity of Litopenaeus vannamei (L. vannamei). The PNWE (50, 100, and 200 μg (g shrimp)−1) was injected into L. vannamei to analyze the immune response parameters, including the total haemocyte count (THC), granular haemocytes (GC), semi-granular haemocytes (SGC), hialin haemocyte (HC), the respiratory burst (RB), the phagocytic ratio (PR), the phagocytic index (PI), and phenoloxidase (PO). We evaluated the activity of the intestinal digestive enzymes (trypsin, chymotrypsin, amylase, and lipase), the histopathology, and the intestine Vibrio numbers. The results showed that different concentrations of the PNWE significantly increased THC, GC, SGC, PO and RB activity, the PR, and the PI of L. vannamei while reducing the HC. In addition, the PNWE also significantly increased the chymotrypsin, trypsin, and amylase activity of L. vannamei. Furthermore, 50 µg (g shrimp)−1 of PNWE regulated the lipase activity. Additionally, different concentrations of the PNWE significantly reduced the Vibrio numbers in the intestine without damaging the hepatopancreas and intestine tissues. These results indicate that the PNWE improves the immune responses of L. vannamei by increasing the haemocyte count and regulating intestinal digestive enzymes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interest in foods that promote inner beauty increases with increases in exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays and with improvements in quality of life. This study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of fermented and aged mountain-cultivated ginseng sprouts (FAMCGSs), which have higher anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects compared to mountain-cultivated ginseng sprouts (MCGSs), as an inner beauty enhancing food. The effect of orally administered FAMCGSs on UV type B (UVB) radiation-induced skin aging was investigated in a hairless mouse model through analyzing skin parameters including epidermal thickness, transepidermal water loss (TEWL), roughness, moisture, elasticity, and collagen contents. The mice exposed to UVB had markedly greater epidermal thickness, TEWL, and skin roughness than those of the normal control (NC) group. In addition, the levels of collagen, skin moisture, and dermal elasticity were lower in the UVB radiation group than the NC group. These UVB-induced skin aging parameters were significantly lower in the groups administered FAMCGSs than in the groups not administered FAMCGSs (p < 0.05). These results show that FAMCGSs exhibit a photoprotective effect in mice exposed to UVB and suggest that FAMCGSs can be used as a food that promotes inner beauty and protects skin from UVB-induced photoaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Panax L. genus is well-known for many positive physiological effects on humans, with major species including P. ginseng, P. quinquefolius, P. notoginseng, P. japonicus, and P. japonicus var. major, the first three of which are globally popular. The combination of UPLC-QTOF-MS and chemometrics were developed to profile "identification markers" enabling their differentiation. The establishment of reliable biomarkers that embody the intrinsic metabolites differentiating species within the same genus is a key in the modernization of traditional Chinese medicine. In this work, the metabolomic differences among these five species were shown, which is critical to ensure their appropriate use. Consequently, 49 compounds were characterized, including 38 identified robust biomarkers, which were mainly composed of saponins and contained small amounts of amino acids and fatty acids. VIP (projection variable importance) was used to identify these five kinds of ginseng. In conclusion, by illustrating the similarities and differences between the five species of ginseng with the use of an integrated strategy of combining UPLC-QTOF-MS and multivariate analysis, we provided a more efficient and more intelligent manner for explaining how the species differ and how their secondary metabolites affect this difference. The most important biomarkers that distinguished the five species included Notoginsenoside-R1, Majonoside R1, Vinaginsenoside R14, Ginsenoside-Rf, and Ginsenoside-Rd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng (Burk) F. H. Chen is a traditional Chinese medicinal and edible plant. However, Panax notoginseng flower (PNF) is rarely used. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the main saponins and the anti-inflammatory bioactivity of PNF saponins (PNFS). We explored the regulation of cyclooxygenase 2 (COX–2), a key mediator of inflammatory pathways, in human keratinocyte cells treated with PNFS. A cell model of UVB-irradiation-induced inflammation was established to determine the influence of PNFS on inflammatory factors and their relationship with LL–37 expression. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Western blotting analysis were used to detect the production of inflammatory factors and LL37. Finally, liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry was employed to quantify the main active components (ginsenosides Rb1, Rb2, Rb3, Rc, Rd, Re, Rg1, and notoginsenoside R1) in PNF. The results show that PNFS substantially inhibited COX–2 activity and downregulated the production of inflammatory factors, indicating that they can be used to reduce skin inflammation. PNFS also increased the expression of LL-37. The contents of ginsenosides Rb1, Rb2, Rb3, Rc, and Rd in PNF were much higher than those of Rg1, and notoginsenoside R1. This paper provides data in support of the application of PNF in cosmetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng (Burk.) F. H. is a genuine medicinal material in Yunnan Province. As accessories, P. notoginseng leaves mainly contain protopanaxadiol saponins. The preliminary findings have indicated that P. notoginseng leaves contribute to its significant pharmacological effects and have been administrated to tranquilize and treat cancer and nerve injury. Saponins from P. notoginseng leaves were isolated and purified by different chromatographic methods, and the structures of 1–22 were elucidated mainly through comprehensive analyses of spectroscopic data. Moreover, the SH-SY5Y cells protection bioactivities of all isolated compounds were tested by establishing L-glutamate models for nerve cell injury. As a result, twenty-two saponins, including eight dammarane saponins, namely notoginsenosides SL1-SL8 (1–8), were identified as new compounds, together with fourteen known compounds, namely notoginsenoside NL-A3 (9), ginsenoside Rc (10), gypenoside IX (11), gypenoside XVII (12), notoginsenoside Fc (13), quinquenoside L3 (14), notoginsenoside NL-B1 (15), notoginsenoside NL-C2 (16), notoginsenoside NL-H2 (17), notoginsenoside NL-H1 (18), vina-ginsenoside R13 (19), ginsenoside II (20), majoroside F4 (21), and notoginsenoside LK4 (22). Among them, notoginsenoside SL1 (1), notoginsenoside SL3 (3), notoginsenoside NL-A3 (9), and ginsenoside Rc (10) showed slight protective effects against L-glutamate-induced nerve cell injury (30 µM). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plant polysaccharides exhibit many biological activities that are remarkably affected by molecular size and structures. This study aimed to investigate the degradation effect of ultrasonic-assisted Fenton reaction on the Panax notoginseng polysaccharide (PP). PP and its three degradation products (PP3, PP5, and PP7) were obtained from optimized hot water extraction and different Fenton reaction treatments, respectively. The results showed that the molecular weight (Mw) of the degraded fractions significantly decreased after treatment with the Fenton reaction. But the backbone characteristics and conformational structure were similar between PP and PP-degraded products, which was estimated by comparing monosaccharides composition, functional group signals in FT-IR spectra, X-ray differential patterns, and proton signals in 1H NMR. In addition, PP7, with an Mw of 5.89 kDa, exhibited stronger antioxidant activities in both the chemiluminescence-based and HHL5 cell-based methods. The results indicated that ultrasonic-assisted Fenton degradation might be used to improve the biological activities of natural polysaccharides by adjusting the molecular size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we proposed a polarization-independent terahertz surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensor based on an angular cyclic element structure. The biosensor has the advantages of high sensitivity detection and high stability against the polarization change of incident terahertz light. Based on the principle that the spatial longitudinal electric field of the SPR biosensor is nonlinear and sensitive to the dielectric constant of the sample, we theoretically proved that specific nonlinear response curves with certain saturating speed and amplitude can be formed to identify different samples. The biosensor was applied to identify Panax (notoginseng, ginseng and American ginseng, 48 samples each) and Paeonia (white peony and red peony, 48 samples each) with the accuracy of 95.8% and 94.4%, respectively. The standard deviations (SD) were less than 0.347% and 0.403%, respectively. Therefore, the polarization-independent terahertz biosensor can rapidly and accurately identify Panax species and Paeonia species. These results provide a new reference for rapid and low-cost identification of medicine species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, minor ginsenosides have received increasing attention due to their outstanding biological activities, yet they are of extremely low content in wild ginseng. Ginsenoside Rb1, which accounts for 20% of the total ginsenosides, is commonly used as a precursor to produce minor ginsenosides via β-glucosidases. To date, many research groups have used different approaches to obtain β-glucosidases that can hydrolyze ginsenoside Rb1. This paper provides a compilation and analysis of relevant literature published mainly in the last decade, focusing on enzymatic hydrolysis pathways, enzymatic characteristics and molecular mechanisms of ginsenoside Rb1 hydrolysis by β-glucosidases. Based on this, it can be concluded that: (1) The β-glucosidases that convert ginsenoside Rb1 are mainly derived from bacteria and fungi and are classified as glycoside hydrolase (GH) families 1 and 3, which hydrolyze ginsenoside Rb1 mainly through the six pathways. (2) Almost all of these β-glucosidases are acidic and neutral enzymes with molecular masses ranging from 44–230 kDa. Furthermore, the different enzymes vary widely in terms of their optimal temperature, degradation products and kinetics. (3) In contrast to the GH1 β-glucosidases, the GH3 β-glucosidases that convert Rb1 show close sequence-function relationships. Mutations affecting the substrate binding site might alter the catalytic efficiency of enzymes and yield different prosapogenins. Further studies should focus on elucidating molecular mechanisms and improving overall performances of β-glucosidases for better application in food and pharmaceutical industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The flower bud of Panax notoginseng (PNF) consumed as a tonic shows potential in the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. To identify the contained multi-components and, in particular, to clarify which components can be absorbed and what metabolites are transformed, unveiling the effective substances of PNF is of vital significance. A unique ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography/ion mobility quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC/IM-QTOF-MS) profiling approach and efficient data processing by the UNIFITM bioinformatics platform were employed to comprehensively identify the multi-components of PNF and the related metabolites in the plasma of rats after oral administration (at a dose of 3.6 g/kg). Two MS2 data acquisition modes operating in the negative electrospray ionization mode, involving high-definition MSE (HDMSE) and data-dependent acquisition (DDA), were utilized aimed to extend the coverage and simultaneously ensure the quality of the MS2 spectra. As a result, 219 components from PNF were identified or tentatively characterized, and 40 thereof could be absorbed. Moreover, 11 metabolites were characterized from the rat plasma. The metabolic pathways mainly included the phase I (deglycosylation and oxidation). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report that systematically studies the in vivo metabolites of PNF, which can assist in better understanding its tonifying effects and benefit its further development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng (PN) exerts cardiovascular-disease-protective effects, but the effect of PN on reducing vascular calcification (VC) is unknown. Under the VC process, however, endothelial bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) signals connect endothelial and smooth muscle cells. To investigate the effects of PN water extract (PNWE) on BMP-2 expression, human EA.hy926 endothelial cells were pretreated with PNWE for 48 h, and BMP-2 expression was then induced using warfarin/β-glycerophosphate (W/BGP) for another 24 h. The expression of BMP-2, the degrees of oxidative stress and inflammation, and the activation of noncanonical NF-κB and Wnt/β-catenin signaling were analyzed. The results showed that the BMP-2 levels in EA.hy926 cells were reduced in the groups treated with 10, 50, or 100 μg/mL PNWE combined with W/BGP. PNWE combined with W/BGP significantly reduced thiobarbituric-acid-reactive substrate and reactive oxygen species levels as well as prostaglandin E2, IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α. PNWE (10, 50, and 100 μg/mL) reduced the p52 levels and p52/p100 protein ratio. Wnt and β-catenin protein expression was decreased in the groups treated with PNWE combined with W/BGP. These results showed that PNWE reduced BMP-2 expression in EA.hy926 cells by inhibiting the noncanonical NF-κB and Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng flowers have the highest content of saponins compared to the other parts of Panax notoginseng, but minor ginsenosides have higher pharmacological activity than the main natural ginsenosides. Therefore, this study focused on the transformation of the main ginsenosides in Panax notoginseng flowers to minor ginsenosides using the fungus of Cladosporium xylophilum isolated from soil. The main ginsenosides Rb1, Rb2, Rb3, and Rc and the notoginsenoside Fa in Panax notoginseng flowers were transformed into the ginsenosides F2 and Rd2, the notoginsenosides Fd and Fe, and the ginsenoside R7; the conversion rates were 100, 100, 100, 88.5, and 100%, respectively. The transformation products were studied by TLC, HPLC, and MS analyses, and the biotransformation pathways of the major ginsenosides were proposed. In addition, the purified enzyme of the fungus was prepared with the molecular weight of 66.4 kDa. The transformation of the monomer ginsenosides by the crude enzyme is consistent with that by the fungus. Additionally, three saponins were isolated from the transformation products and identified as the ginsenoside Rd2 and the notoginsenosides Fe and Fd by NMR and MS analyses. This study provided a unique and powerful microbial strain for efficiently transformating major ginsenosides in P. notoginseng flowers to minor ginsenosides, which will help raise the functional and economic value of the P. notoginseng flower. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the study, the structural features and hypoglycemic effects of a polysaccharide Pan from the root of Panax notoginseng were investigated. The molecular weight of Pan was 8.27 kDa. Structural analysis indicated that Pan mainly consisted of →3)-β-L-Rhap-(1→, →3,6)-β-D-Galf-(1→ and →6)-β-D-Galf-(1→ residues with acetyl groups. Pan exhibited good antioxidant activity. Pan could slow down the body weight and the content of blood glucose in the high-fat diet-induced mice, further suppress GLUT-2 and SGLT-1 expression in the intestines, and enhance p-IRS and p-AMPK expression in the livers, finally exhibiting hypoglycemic effects. The results could supply a direction for further research on polysaccharides as components for the control of hyperglycemia induced by obesity and diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Essential oils (EOs) have been proposed as an alternative to conventional pesticides to inhibit fungal pathogens. However, the application of EOs is considerably limited due to their highly volatile nature and unpredictable effects on other microbes. In our study, the composition of bacterial and fungal communities from the rhizosphere soil of P. notoginseng under four treatment levels of Alpinia officinarum Hance EO was characterized over several growth stages. Leaf weight varied dramatically among the four EO treatment levels after four months of growth, and the disease index at a low concentration (0.14 mg/g) of EO addition was the lowest among the P. notoginseng growth stages. The content of monomeric saponins was elevated when EO was added. Bacterial and fungal diversity in the absence of plants showed a decreasing trend with increasing levels of EO. Bacterial diversity recovery was more correlated with plant growth than was fungal diversity recovery. Compared with the control (no EO addition), a low concentration of EO significantly accumulated Actinomycota, including Acidothermus, Blastococcus, Catenulispora, Conexibacter, Rhodococcus, and Sinomonas, after one month of plant-microbial interaction. Overall, the results showed that both the plant growth stage and EOs drive changes in the microbial community composition in the rhizosphere of P. notoginseng. Plant development status had a stronger influence on bacterial diversity than on fungal diversity. EO had a more significant effect on fungal community composition, increasing the dominance of Ascomycota when EO concentration was increased. Under the interaction of P. notoginseng growth and EO, a large number of bacterial genera that have been described as plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) responded positively to low concentrations of EO application, suggesting that EO may recruit beneficial microbes in the root zone to cope with pathogens and reduce root rot disease. These results offer novel insights into the relationship between EO application, altered microbial communities in the plant roots, plant growth stage, and disease occurrence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The leaves of Panax species (e.g., Panax ginseng-PGL, P. quinquefolius-PQL, and P. notoginseng-PNL) can serve as a source for healthcare products. Comprehensive characterization and unveiling of the metabolomic difference among PGL, PQL, and PNL are critical to ensure their correct use. For this purpose, enhanced profiling and chemometrics were integrated to probe into the ginsenoside markers for PGL/PQL/PNL by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/ion mobility-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC/IM-QTOF-MS). A hybrid scan approach (HDMSE-HDDDA) was established achieving the dimension-enhanced metabolic profiling, with 342 saponins identified or tentatively characterized from PGL/PQL/PNL. Multivariate statistical analysis (33 batches of leaf samples) could unveil 42 marker saponins, and the characteristic ginsenosides diagnostic for differentiating among PGL/PQL/PNL were primarily established. Compared with the single DDA or DIA, the HDMSE-HDDDA hybrid scan approach could balance between the metabolome coverage and spectral reliability, leading to high-definition MS spectra and the additional collision-cross section (CCS) useful to differentiate isomers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ilyonectria radicicola species complex (A.A. Hildebr.) A. Cabral and Crous 2011 contains species of soilborne necrotrophic plant pathogens. The most aggressive to ginseng roots is I. mors-panacis, whereas I. robusta, I. crassa, I. panacis and I. radicicola are less aggressive. Infected ginseng roots show orange-red to black-brown lesions that can expand into a severe root rot, known as disappearing root rot, where only epidermal root tissue remains. Leaves become red-brown with wilting, and stems can have vascular discoloration with black-brown lesions at the base. Less aggressive Ilyonectria species trigger jasmonic acid (JA)-related defenses inducing host ginsenosides, pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins, wound periderm, and cell wall thickening. In contrast, I. mors-panacis triggers reactive oxygen species (ROS) and salicylic acid (SA) production but suppresses JA-related defenses and ginsenoside accumulation. It is also able to suppress SA-related PR protein production. Virulence factors include potential effectors that may suppress PAMP (Pathogen Associated Molecular Patterns) triggered immunity (PTI), polyphenoloxidases, Hsp90 inhibitors, siderophores and cell-wall-degrading enzymes, such as pectinases. Overall, I. mors-panacis appears to be more aggressive because it can suppress JA and SA-related PTI allowing for more extensive colonization of ginseng roots. While many possible mechanisms of host resistance and pathogen virulence mechanisms have been examined, there is a need for using genetic approaches, such as RNAi silencing of genes of Panax or Ilyonectria, to determine their importance in the interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Northeast China is well known for cultivating ginseng (Panax ginseng and P. quinquefolius). Ginseng roots are threatened by the infection of the most notorious Cylindrocarpon-like fungi (CLF), which are a complex containing important soilborne pathogens. Although the disease is economically important, little is known about the genetic diversity and population structure of the pathogenic CLF complex. This knowledge will help in developing effective disease management strategies. To conduct this study, diseased ginseng roots were collected from 12 regions representing the main ginseng-growing areas in Northeast China, and CLF were isolated. A total of 169 isolates with CLF anamorph were identified in two Dactylonectria species and six Ilyonectria species using morphological and molecular methods. Cross pathogenicity tests showed that all species were pathogenic to both P. ginseng and P. quinquefolius, and most of them had slightly stronger aggressiveness in P. ginseng. The analysis of partial sequences of the Histone H3 gene generated a high level of genetic diversity and geographic differentiation. A total of 132 variable sites were detected in 169 sequences, which formed 20 haplotypes with a haplotype diversity of 0.824. Genetic differentiation was positively correlated with geographic distance. The geographic populations in the range of Changbai Mountain were distinctly discriminated from those in other non-Changbai Mountain populations. No significant genetic differentiation was found between ginseng hosts. Cylindrocarpon-like fungi causing ginseng root diseases are geographically correlated in the genetic distance in Northeast China and should be managed correspondingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The classification of the taproots of Panax notoginseng is conducive to improving the economic added value of its products. In this study, a real-time sorting robot system for Panax notoginseng taproots was developed based on the improved DeepLabv3+ model. The system is equipped with the improved DeepLabv3+ classification model for different grades of Panax notoginseng taproots. The model uses Xception as the taproot feature extraction network of Panax notoginseng. In the residual structure of the Xception network, a group normalization layer with deep separable convolution is adopted. Meanwhile, the global maximum pooling method is added in the Atrous Spatial Pyramid Pooling (ASPP) part to retain more texture information, and multiple shallow effective feature layers are designed to overlap in the decoding part to minimize the loss of features and improve the segmentation accuracy of Panax notoginseng taproots of all grades. The model test results show that the Xception-DeepLabv3+ model performs better than VGG16-U-Net and ResNet50-PSPNet models, with a Mean Pixel Accuracy (MPA) and a Mean Intersection over Union (MIoU) of 78.98% and 88.98% on the test set, respectively. The improved I-Xce-DeepLabv3+ model achieves an average detection time of 0.22 s, an MPA of 85.72%, and an MIoU of 90.32%, and it outperforms Xce-U-Net, Xce-PSPNet, and Xce-DeepLabv3+ models. The system control software was developed as a multi-threaded system to design a system grading strategy, which solves the problem that the identification signal is not synchronized with the grading signal. The system test results show that the average sorting accuracy of the system is 77% and the average false detection rate is 21.97% when the conveyor belt running speed is 1.55 m/s. The separation efficiency for a single-channel system is 200–300 kg/h, which can replace the manual work of three workers. The proposed method meets the requirements of current Panax notoginseng processing enterprises and provides technical support for the intelligent separation of Panax notoginseng taproots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of different extraction methods, such as acidic (AC), enzymatic (EN), homogenization (H), ultrsonication (U) and alkali (AL), on structure, rheological, thermal and functional properties of soluble dietary fiber (SDF) from Sanchi flower was evaluated in this study. The highest extraction yield (23.14%) was obtained for AL-SDF extract. Glucose (Glc) and galactose (Gal) were found to be the major constituents in Sanchi SDF. Homogenization and Ultrsonication treatments caused significant compaction of pores in the microstructures. FTIR analysis showed increased hydrolysis of pectin and hemicellulose in U, AL and AC-SDF extracts. H-SDF and AC-SDF exhibited similar shear rate change with the rise in shear stress. H-SDF was thermally more stable than other SDF extracts. Among all extraction methods, H-SDF and U-SDF exhibited the highest water holding capacity (WHC), oil-holding capacity (OHC), Bile acid-adsorption capacity (BAC), Cholesterol-adsorption capacity (CAC) and Glucose adsorption capacity (GAC). Thus, Sanchi flower SDF with improved functional properties could be utilized as a functional food ingredient in the development of various food products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Results from different clinical trials on the effects of ginseng on prediabetes and type 2 diabetes (T2DM) are still inconsistent. To fill this knowledge gap, we investigated the overall effects of ginseng supplementation on improving cardiometabolic biomarkers among these patients. A systematic literature search was conducted on PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane library. A random-effect model was applied to estimate the weighted mean difference and 95% CI for each outcome. Overall, 20 eligible RCTs were included. Meta-analyses revealed that ginseng supplementation significantly reduced serum concentration of FPG, TC, IL-6, and HOMA-IR values. It also increased HR and TNF-α levels. Ginseng supplementation changed HOMA-IR and HDL-C significantly based on dose and changed HOMA-IR and LDL-C significantly based on study duration in a non-linear fashion. Furthermore, meta-regression analyses indicated a linear relationship between ginseng dose and absolute changes in HDL-C. Moreover, subgroup analyses showed that ginseng supplementation changed TC and LDL-C when the supplementation dose was ≥2 g/day. Our findings suggest that ginseng supplementation may be an effective strategy for improving cardiometabolic profiles in individuals with prediabetes and T2DM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng is a medicinal plant in China, the flowers of which have high medicinal value. To study the differences in the floral fragrance compounds of P. notoginseng flowers (bionic wild cultivation) from the forests of Yunnan Province, the floral fragrance compounds from four varieties of P. notoginseng flowers (four-forked seven leaves, three-forked seven leaves, four-forked five–seven leaves, and three-forked five–six leaves) were compared and analyzed via headspace solid phase microextraction combined with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry methods. A total of 53 floral fragrance compounds from the P. notoginseng flowers were divided into eight categories, mainly consisting of terpenes, alkynes, aromatic hydrocarbons, and alcohols. Moreover, high contents of 3-carene, germacrene D, (−)-α-gurjunene, valencene, (+)-γ-gurjunene, menogene, and aromandendrene were identified from the flowers of different P. notoginseng varieties. Interestingly, floral fragrance compounds such as 3-carene, valencene, aromandendrene, menogene, and (+)-γ-gurjunene were first reported in the flowers of P. notoginseng. Cluster analysis showed that P. notoginseng with four-forked and three-forked leaves clustered into two subgroups, respectively. In addition, principal component analysis showed that (+)-γ-gurjunene, (+)-calarene, copaene, 1,8,12-bisabolatriene, γ-elemene, (–)-aristolene, caryophyllene, 3-carenes, and 2,6-dimethyl-1,3,6-heptatriene can be used to distinguish the floral fragrance components of four P. notoginseng flower species. This study provides a theoretical basis for elucidating the floral fragrance compounds emitted from the flowers of different P. notoginseng varieties in an agroforestry system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rhizosphere of ginseng contains a wide range of microorganisms that can have beneficial or harmful effects on the plant. Root exudates of ginseng, particularly ginsenosides and phenolic acids, appear to select for particular microbial populations through their stimulatory and inhibitory activities, which may account for the similarities between the rhizosphere microbiomes of different cultivated species of Panax. Many practices of cultivation attempt to mimic the natural conditions of ginseng as an understory plant in hilly forested areas. However, these practices are often disruptive to soil, and thus the soil microbiome differs between wild and cultivated ginseng. Changes in the microbiome during cultivation can be harmful as they have been associated with negative changes of the soil physiochemistry as well as the promotion of plant diseases. However, isolation of a number of beneficial microbes from the ginseng rhizosphere indicates that many have the potential to improve ginseng production. The application of high-throughput sequencing to study the rhizosphere microbiome of ginseng grown under a variety of conditions continues to greatly expand our knowledge of the diversity and abundance of those organisms as well as their impacts of cultivation. While there is much more to be learnt, many aspects of the ginseng rhizosphere microbiome have already been revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax notoginseng is an important functional health product, and has been used worldwide because of a wide range of pharmacological activities, of which the taproot is the main edible or medicinal part. However, the technologies for origin discrimination still need to be further studied. In this study, an ICP-MS/MS method for the accurate determination of 49 elements was established, whereby the instrumental detection limits (LODs) were between 0.0003 and 7.716 mg/kg, whereas the quantification limits (LOQs) were between 0.0011 and 25.7202 mg/kg, recovery of the method was in the range of 85.82% to 104.98%, and the relative standard deviations (RSDs) were lower than 10%. Based on the content of multi-element in P. notoginseng (total of 89 mixed samples), the discriminant models of origins and cultivation models were accurately determined by the neural networks (prediction accuracy was 0.9259 and area under ROC curve was 0.9750) and the support vector machine algorithm (both 1.0000), respectively. The discriminant models established in this study could be used to support transparency and traceability of supply chains of P. notoginseng and thus avoid the fraud of geographic identification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rhizoma Panacis Japonici (RPJ) is an ancient herbal medicine from China that has long been employed for its medicinal benefits in relieving arthritis physical debility and diverse afflictions. The primary bioactive constituents found in RPJ are triterpene saponins, which exhibit numerous pharmacological actions, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and immunomodulating effects. The present study established a straightforward and effective approach for characterizing triterpene saponins in RPJ. An offline HILIC × RP LC/QTOF-MS method was developed, along with a self-constructed in-house database containing 612 saponins reported in the Panax genus and 228 predicted metabolites. The approach achieved good chromatographic performance in isolating triterpene saponins of RPJ, with the HILIC column as the first dimension ( 1 D) and the BEH C18 column as the second dimension ( 2 D). The developed two-dimensional liquid chromatography system exhibited an orthogonality of 0.61 and a peak capacity of 1249. Detection was performed using a QTOF mass spectrometer in a data-independent manner (MS E ) in a negative ion mode. Using the in-house database, the collected MS data were processed by an automatic workflow on UNIFI 1.8.2 software, which included data correction, matching of precursor and product ions, and peak annotation. In this study, 307 saponins were characterized from RPJ and 76 saponins were identified for the first time in Panax japonicus . This research not only enhances our understanding of the chemical characteristics of RPJ but also offers a simple and efficient method for analyzing the complex composition of herbal medicine.