Black phosphorus conjugation of chemotherapeutic ginsenoside Rg3: enhancing targeted multimodal nanotheranostics against lung cancer metastasis

Ginsenosides in cancer: Proliferation, metastasis, and drug resistance

Ginseng, the dried root of Panax ginseng C.A. Mey., is widely used in Chinese herbal medicine. Ginsenosides, the primary active components of ginseng, exhibit diverse anticancer functions through various mechanisms, such as inhibiting tumor cell proliferation, promoting apoptosis, and suppressing cell invasion and migration. In this article, the mechanism of action of 20 ginsenoside subtypes in tumor therapy and the research progress of multifunctional nanosystems are reviewed, in order to provide reference for clinical prevention and treatment of cancer.

Unveiling the experimental proof of the anticancer potential of ginsenoside Rg3 (Review)

Ginsenoside Rg3 (GS-Rg3), a sterol molecule isolated from ginseng, has demonstrated various immunological properties, including inhibition of cancer cell proliferation and metastasis, reversal of drug resistance and enhancement of chemotherapy sensitivity. The recent surge in attention towards GS-Rg3 can be attributed to its potential as an antitumor angiogenesis agent and as a therapeutic candidate for immunotherapy. The development of GS-Rg3 as an agent for these purposes has accelerated research on its mechanisms of action. The present review summarizes recent studies investigating the antitumor activity of GS-Rg3 and its underlying mechanisms, as well as providing essential information for future studies on GS-Rg3.

Ginsenosides: a potential natural medicine to protect the lungs from lung cancer and inflammatory lung disease

Lung cancer is the malignancy with the highest morbidity and mortality. Additionally, pulmonary inflammatory diseases, such as pneumonia, acute lung injury, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and pulmonary fibrosis (PF), also have high mortality rates and can promote the development and progression of lung cancer. Unfortunately, available treatments for them are limited, so it is critical to search for effective drugs and treatment strategies to protect the lungs. Ginsenosides, the main active components of ginseng, have been shown to have anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory activities. In this paper, we focus on the beneficial effects of ginsenosides on lung diseases and their molecular mechanisms. Firstly, the molecular mechanism of ginsenosides against lung cancer was summarized in detail, mainly from the points of view of proliferation, apoptosis, autophagy, angiogenesis, metastasis, drug resistance and immunity. In in vivo and in vitro lung cancer models, ginsenosides Rg3, Rh2 and CK were reported to have strong anti-lung cancer effects. Then, in the models of pneumonia and acute lung injury, the protective effect of Rb1 was particularly remarkable, followed by Rg3 and Rg1, and its molecular mechanism was mainly associated with targeting NF-κB, Nrf2, MAPK and PI3K/Akt pathways to alleviate inflammation, oxidative stress and apoptosis. Additionally, ginsenosides may also have a potential health-promoting effect in the improvement of COPD, asthma and PF. Furthermore, to overcome the low bioavailability of CK and Rh2, the development of nanoparticles, micelles, liposomes and other nanomedicine delivery systems can significantly improve the efficacy of targeted lung cancer treatment. To conclude, ginsenosides can be used as both anti-lung cancer and lung protective agents or adjuvants and have great potential for future clinical applications.

Processing technologies, phytochemistry, bioactivities and applications of black ginseng-a novel manufactured ginseng product: A comprehensive review

Black ginseng is a novel manufactured ginseng product, and the application of black ginseng products in market is increasing in recent years. Black ginseng is prepared by steaming and fermentation, but not as mature as processing red ginseng. Therefore, complete proposals for preparation techniques are firstly presented. Additionally, there are also abundant chemical components in black ginseng, including ginsenosides, polysaccharides, amino acids, polyphenols, flavonoids, etc. Among them, ginsenosides, polysaccharides and phenolic compounds are the main ingredients, making health benefits of black ginseng stronger than other ginseng products. Therefore, black ginseng as a functional food has come to the market in various forms, such as candies, tea, porridge, soup, etc. The improvement in nutrition, flavor, and safety has exhibited a broad prospect for black ginseng products in food industry. Accordingly, preparation technologies, phytochemistry, health benefits and application of black ginseng are comprehensively evaluated.

Molecular mechanism of acceptor selection in cyclodextrin glycosyltransferases catalyzed ginsenoside transglycosylation

Understanding the mechanisms of enzyme specificity is increasingly important from a fundamental viewpoint and for practical applications. Transglycosylation has attracted many attentions due to its importance in improving the functional properties of acceptor substrates both in vivo and in vitro. Cyclodextrin glucanotransferase (CGTase) is one of the key enzymes in transglycosylation, it has a broad substrate spectrum and utilizes sugar as the donor. However, little is known about the acceptor selectivity of CGTase, which greatly hampers efforts toward the rational design of desirable transglycosylated derivatives. In this study, we found that the CGTase from Bacillus circulans, BcCGTase, was able to form glycosylated products with diverse ginsenosides. In particular, it not only carries out diverse mono-, di-, and even higher-order glycosylations via the transfer of glucose moieties to the COGlc positions, but also can glycosylate the C3-OH position of ginsenosides. In contrast, another CGTase from Bacillus licheniformis (BlCGTase) showed relatively specific acceptor preference with only several ginsenosides. Structural comparison between BcCGTase and BlCGTase revealed that the Arg74/K81 position within the acceptor-binding sites of BcCGTase/BlCGTase was responsible for the differences in catalytic specificity for ginsenoside F1. Further mutagenesis confirmed their roles in the acceptor selection. In conclusion, our study not only demonstrates the acceptor selectivity of CGTases, but also provides insight into the catalytic mechanism of CGTases, which will potentially increase the utility of CGTase for biosynthesis of new, rationally designed transglycosylated derivatives.

Advancements in redox-sensitive micelles as nanotheranostics: A new horizon in cancer management

World Health Organisation (WHO) delineated cancer as one of the foremost reasons for mortality with 10 million deaths in the year 2020. Early diagnosis and effective drug delivery are of utmost importance in cancer management. The entrapment of both bio-imaging dyes and drugs will open novel avenues in the area of tumor theranostics. Elevated levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and glutathione (GSH) are the characteristic features of the tumor microenvironment (TME). Researchers have taken advantage of these specific TME features in recent years to develop micelle-based theranostic nanosystems. This review focuses on the advantages of redox-sensitive micelles (RSMs) and supramolecular self-assemblies for tumor theranostics. Key chemical linkers employed for the tumor-specific release of the cargo have been discussed. In vitro characterisation techniques used for the characterization of RSMs have been deliberated. Potential bottlenecks that may present themselves in the bench-to-bedside translation of this technology and the regulatory considerations have been deliberated.