No abstract

The positive result of the study supports the potential value of conducting a fully powered trial to explore further efficacy of SBVP for CIPN. However a single positive result within this pilot study must be interpreted with caution.

This safety results of the SBVP therapy merits further investigations in a larger size trial for it to develop into a potential intervention for managing CIPN symptoms. This study will be extended to a dose-response evaluation to further establish safety and response, prior to a randomized trial.

Abstract.Correlation between inhibition of cell motility and anti-invasive activity by the water extract of HangAmDan-B (HAD-B), a crude extract of eight Korean medicinal animals and plants, in NCI-H460 human non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells was investigated. Within the concentrations that were not cytotoxic, HAD-B induced significant concentrationdependent inhibition of cell motility and invasiveness of NCI-H460 cells. Treatment with HAD-B resulted in dosedependent inhibition of the activities of matrix metallo proteinase (MMP)-2 and MMP-9, and this was correlated with a decrease in expression of their mRNA and proteins, and upregulation of tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase (TIMP)-1 and TIMP-2 expression. Anti-invasive activity of HAD-B was also found to be associated with increased tightness of the tight junction (TJ), as demonstrated by an increase in transepithelial electrical resistance. In addition, the present results indicated that treatment with HAD-B resulted in repression of the levels of claudin family members, which are major components of TJs that play a key role in control and selectivity of para cellular transport. Although further studies are needed, findings from the present study indicate that TJs and MMPs are critical targets of HAD-B-induced anti-invasiveness in NCI-H460 NSCLC cells.

No abstract

Ginsenosides are ginseng saponins, which are the major biologically active components of Panax ginseng, often metabolized by intestinal bacteria into more effective forms. In this study, we found that the antiproliferative activity of ginseng increased after enzymatic processing of ginseng saponin (50% inhibitory concentration [IC50], >30 μg/mL), which may be the result of the accumulation of minor saponins, such as Rh1, Rg3, compound K, and PPT constituents in ginseng saponin. Using the Agilent PrimeView Human Gene Expression Array, we found that the expression of several genes involved in apoptosis (caspase-4, Annexin A2, HSPA9, AIFM1, UQCRC2, and caspase-7) were increased in HepG2 human hepatocarcinoma cells after their treatment with enzyme-modified ginseng extract (EMGE). Furthermore, several genes implicated in cell cycle progression (CDCA3, CDCA8, CABLES2, CDC25B, CNNM3, and CCNK) showed decreased expression in HepG2 cells treated with EMGE. Finally, from flow cytometric analysis, we found that EMGE-treated HepG2 cells showed increased apoptotic sub-G1 population (24%), compared with that observed in DMSO-treated control cells (1.6%). Taken together, our results suggest that EMGE induces anticancer activity through the induction of apoptosis-related genes and cell cycle arrest via decreased expression of cell cycle regulatory genes.

This experiment was conducted to evaluate inhibitory effects against lung metastasis and promotion of splenocytes by water extracts from various mushrooms including Armillaria mellea, Grifola frondosa, Garnoderma frondosa, Codyceps militaris, Hericium erinaceus, Coriolus versicolor, Agaricus Blazei with Lycium Chinense Miller (known as M8). Analysis of carbohydrate using HPTLC showed that beta-glucan and pachyman were some of the major components of M8. Oral administration of M8 resulted in a dose-dependent tendency to inhibit lung metastasis after intravenous injection of colon26-L5 cells. Treatment with M8 resulted in a significant increase of T cell and B cell mitogenic stimuli. The population of CD3, CD19, CD4, and CD8 positive cells increased in a dose dependent manner of M8 administration. However, no significant results were obtained from the population of Mac-1 and NK1.1 positive cells. Oral administration of M8 resulted in the increased production of IFN-gamma and IL-4 by splenocytes stimulated with Con A compared with untreated controls. These results show that M8 has antitumor activities which may be useful as an antimetastatic agent.

The aim of the study was to define the toxicity of HangAmDan-B (HAD-B) in mice over the short and long term. HAD-B was studied in 1-week single and 5-week repeated oral dose toxicity tests on male Imprinting Control Region mice. Doses used in 1 week single oral dose toxicity tests were 0, 0.2, 1, 5, and 25 g/kg/day and those of repeated toxicity test were 0, 0.04, 0.2, 1, and 2 g/kg/day. Blood and urine samples were assayed and their morphology observed. Numerical data were compared using Mann-Whitney U test and analysis of variance. Significantly decreased red blood cell levels in mice from S2-HAD-B, S3-HAD-B, S4-HAD-B, and S5-HAD-B groups were observed in single oral dose toxicity tests. Hemoglobin, hematocrit, and mean cell hemoglobin values in mice from the S4-HAD-B and S5-HAD-B groups were also significantly decreased. No mortalities or significant differences in all factors were observed during the dosing period of the repeated dose toxicity test. Administering 2 g/kg/day of HAD-B in mice over a 5-week period showed no significant hematological changes. However, risk of anemia with more than 5 g/kg/ day administration of HAD-B was found. In general, HAD-B appears to be safe and nontoxic, and a no observed adverse effect level in mice was established at 2 g/kg/ day. This data serves as satisfactory preclinical evidence for the safety of HAD-B should a future clinical trial for HAD-B be launched. Further studies are required to confirm these safety results and to carry out a safety trial in humans.