Ginseng Industry Research Articles

Autotoxic Ginsenoside Disrupts Soil Fungal Microbiomes by Stimulating Potentially Pathogenic Microbes.

Autotoxic ginsenosides have been implicated as one of the major causes for replant failure of Sanqi ginseng (Panax notoginseng); however, the impact of autotoxic ginsenosides on the fungal microbiome, especially on soilborne fungal pathogens, remains poorly understood. In this study, we aimed to investigate the influence of the ginsenoside monomers Rg1, Rb1, and Rh1, and that of their mixture (Mix), on the composition and diversity of the soil fungal community, as well as on the abundance and growth of the soilborne pathogen Fusarium oxysporum in pure culture. The addition of autotoxic ginsenosides altered the composition of the total fungal microbiome, as well as the taxa within the shared and unique treatment-based components, but did not alter alpha diversity (α-diversity). In particular, autotoxic ginsenosides enriched potentially pathogenic taxa, such as Alternaria, Cylindrocarpon, Gibberella, Phoma, and Fusarium, and decreased the abundances of beneficial taxa such as Acremonium, Mucor, and Ochroconis Relative abundances of pathogenic taxa were significantly and negatively correlated with those of beneficial taxa. Among the pathogenic fungi, the genus Fusarium was most responsive to ginsenoside addition, with the abundance of Fusarium oxysporum consistently enhanced in the ginsenoside-treated soils. Validation tests confirmed that autotoxic ginsenosides promoted mycelial growth and conidial germination of the root rot pathogen F. oxysporum In addition, the autotoxic ginsenoside mixture exhibited synergistic effects on pathogen proliferation. Collectively, these results highlight that autotoxic ginsenosides are capable of disrupting the equilibrium of fungal microbiomes through the stimulation of potential soilborne pathogens, which presents a significant hurdle in remediating replant failure of Sanqi ginseng.IMPORTANCE Sanqi ginseng [Panax notoginseng (Burk.) F. H. Chen] is geoauthentically produced in a restricted area of southwest China, and successful replanting requires a rotation cycle of more than 15 to 30 years. The increasing demand for Sanqi ginseng and diminishing arable land resources drive farmers to employ consecutive monoculture systems. Replant failure has severely threatened the sustainable production of Sanqi ginseng and causes great economic losses annually. Worse still, the acreage and severity of replant failure are increased yearly, which may destroy the Sanqi ginseng industry in the near future. The significance of this work is to decipher the mechanism of how autotoxic ginsenosides promote the accumulation of soilborne pathogens and disrupt the equilibrium of soil fungal microbiomes. This result may help us to develop effective approaches to successfully conquer the replant failure of Sanqi ginseng.

Biotransformation of ginsenoside Rb1 with wild Cordyceps sinensis and Ascomycota sp. and its antihyperlipidemic effects on the diet-induced cholesterol of zebrafish.

Biotransformation major ginsenoside into minor ginsenoside via microbial fermentation has been proposed as a viable option to produce minor ginsenoside, becauseof its biological activity superior to major ginsenoside. Cordyceps sinensis contains a complex enzymatic system and many ingredients with medicinal value that could be useful tools for biotransformation applications in the ginseng industry. Wild C. sinensis and Ascomycota sp. were collected from Changbai Mountain and identified. Analysis by UPLC-MS and HPLC indicates that the underlying pathway of major ginsenoside Rb1 during fermentation with strains was Rb1→Rd→F2→CK and Rb1→Rd→Rg3. C. sinensis and Ascomycota sp. can be applied to minor ginsenoside preparation in the food and medical industries. The antihyperlipidemic effects of Rb1 were further screened from fermentation in larvae zebrafish based on the fluorescence intensity. In the adult zebrafish model, treatment with high-dose ginsenoside Rb1 group exhibited a significant decrease in the plasma total cholesterol (TC) and triglyceride (TG) levels by 36.49% (p<.05) and 29.97% (p<.05), respectively, compared with high cholesterol group (HC). Furthermore, ginsenoside Rb1 treatment decreased the mRNA levels of LDLR and SREBP2 in the adult zebrafish liver. Ginsenoside Rb1 diet supplement significantly increased the mRNA expression of HMGCR and CYP7A1. These results suggest that ginsenoside Rb1 attenuates hypercholesterolemia via the downregulation of cholesterol synthesis and assembly or secretion of lipoproteins as well as the upregulation of cholesterol transport and efflux, providing a novel idea of ginsenoside keeping cholesterol levels down for the clinical application. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Wild Cordyceps sinensis has the potential to be applied to the preparation for minor ginsenoside. Furthermore, the final fermentation product has more functional characteristics, including cordyceps acid, cordycepin, and adenosine. Wild Cordyceps sinensis and Ascomycota sp. could potentially be employed in the food and medical industries.

Near-Infrared Transmittance Spectral Imaging for Nondestructive Measurement of Internal Disorder in Korean Ginseng.

The grading of ginseng (Panax ginseng) including the evaluation of internal quality attributes is essential in the ginseng industry for quality control. Assessment for inner whitening, a major internal disorder, must be conducted when identifying high quality ginseng. Conventional methods for detecting inner whitening in ginseng root samples use manual inspection, which is time-consuming and inaccurate. This study develops an internal quality measurement technique using near-infrared transmittance spectral imaging to evaluate inner whitening in ginseng samples. Principle component analysis (PCA) was used on ginseng hypercube data to evaluate the developed technique. The transmittance spectra and spectral images of ginseng samples exhibiting inner whitening showed weak intensity characteristics compared to normal ginseng in the region of 900–1050 nm and 1150–1400 nm respectively, owing to the presence of whitish internal tissues that have higher optical density. On the basis of the multivariate analysis method, even a simple waveband ratio image has the great potential to quickly detect inner whitening in ginseng samples, since these ratio images show a significant difference between whitened and non-whitened regions. Therefore, it is possible to develop an efficient and rapid spectral imaging system for the real-time detection of inner whitening in ginseng using minimal spectral wavebands. This novel strategy for the rapid, cost-effective, non-destructive detection of ginseng’s inner quality can be a key component for the automation of ginseng grading.

Current Status and Problem-Solving Strategies for Ginseng Industry.

Ginseng is a plant in the family Araliaceae and the genus Panax with the formal name of Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer and the treasure of traditional herbal medicine resources as the "king of herbs". Ginseng has been traditionally used for over 2,000 years in Asian countries, especially in China and Republic of Korea. During the ginseng industry chain, the cultivation in farmland and seed breeding are important for sustainable development of ginseng resources. Active components in ginseng including ginsenosides, polysaccharides, phenolic compound and their therapeutic benefits for multiple diseases are being studied. This paper aimed to review current research status and problem-solving strategies for each step of ginseng industry, including ginseng growing cultivation and seed resources, basic and clinical studies as well as comparison of ginseng industry between China and Republic of Korea, hoping to provide a reference for research direction and future development of ginseng industry.

Structural analysis and biological activity of cell wall polysaccharides extracted from Panax ginseng marc

Ginseng marc is a major by-product of the ginseng industry currently used as animal feed or fertilizer. This fibrous, insoluble waste stream is rich in cell wall polysaccharides and therefore a potential source of ingredients for functional food with health-promoting properties. However, the extraction of these polysaccharides has proved problematic and their exact composition remains unknown. Here we have analysed the composition, structure and biological activity of polysaccharides from ginseng root, stem and leaf marc fractionated using a chelator and alkali solutions. The pectic fraction has been extracted from root marc in high abundance and can activate the production of interleukine-1α and the hematopoietic growth factor by RAW 264.7 murine macrophage cells, which are important immune regulators of T-cells during inflammatory responses and infection processes. Our study reveals the potential to increase the value of ginseng marc by generating carbohydrate-based products with a higher value than animal feed.

Consumer Preference Analysis of Korean Red Ginseng Tonic for Revitalizing Korean Ginseng Industry

Consumer Preference Analysis of Korean Red Ginseng Tonic for Revitalizing Korean Ginseng Industry

Development of a single-tube nested PCR-lateral flow biosensor assay for rapid and accurate detection of Alternaria panax Whetz.

Alternaria panax Whetz causes one of the most commonly occurring and serious diseases in ginseng cultivation, and may cause significant production and economic losses in the ginseng industry. Rapid, early, and accurate identification of Alternaria panax Whetz is an essential prerequisite for the effective prevention and control of further infection spread. In this work, a rapid and accurate molecular diagnostic method, a single-tube nested PCR-lateral flow biosensor assay (STNPCR-LFBA), was developed for rapid identification of Alternaria panax Whetz. The STNPCR-LFBA was 100 times more sensitive than the traditional PCR-LFBA. Besides that, the PCR product was checked by a lateral flow biosensor assay, which provided a basis for the migration of the detection technology to a point-of-care test (POCT) format. STNPCR-LFBA was specific to Alternaria panax Whetz, and no cross-reactions were observed in other non-target samples; the limit of detection was up to 0.01 pg of Alternaria panax Whetz genomic DNA. STNPCR-LFBA could also be used for specific identification of Alternaria panax Whetz in real samples. STNPCR-LFBA is useful for identifying Alternaria panax Whetz due to its rapidity, accuracy, and simple manipulation.

Comprehensive comparative analysis of chloroplast genomes from seven Panax species and development of an authentication system based on species-unique single nucleotide polymorphism markers

BackgroundPanax species are important herbal medicinal plants in the Araliaceae family. Recently, we reported the complete chloroplast genomes and 45S nuclear ribosomal DNA sequences from seven Panax species, two (P.quinquefolius and P.trifolius) from North America and five (P.ginseng, P.notoginseng, P.japonicus, P.vietnamensis, and P.stipuleanatus) from Asia. MethodsWe conducted phylogenetic analysis of these chloroplast sequences with 12 other Araliaceae species and comprehensive comparative analysis among the seven Panax whole chloroplast genomes. ResultsWe identified 1,128 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in coding gene sequences, distributed among 72 of the 79 protein-coding genes in the chloroplast genomes of the seven Panax species. The other seven genes (including psaJ, psbN, rpl23, psbF, psbL, rps18, and rps7) were identical among the Panax species. We also discovered that 12 large chloroplast genome fragments were transferred into the mitochondrial genome based on sharing of more than 90% sequence similarity. The total size of transferred fragments was 60,331 bp, corresponding to approximately 38.6% of chloroplast genome. We developed 18 SNP markers from the chloroplast genic coding sequence regions that were not similar to regions in the mitochondrial genome. These markers included two or three species-specific markers for each species and can be used to authenticate all the seven Panax species from the others. ConclusionThe comparative analysis of chloroplast genomes from seven Panax species elucidated their genetic diversity and evolutionary relationships, and 18 species-specific markers were able to discriminate among these species, thereby furthering efforts to protect the ginseng industry from economically motivated adulteration.

Physicochemical and Antioxidant Properties of Red Ginseng Starch, a By-Product of the Red Ginseng Industry

Physicochemical and Antioxidant Properties of Red Ginseng Starch, a By-Product of the Red Ginseng Industry

Research on technology regulation of non-polluted cultivation and strategies of Panax ginseng cultivation in farmland

As the limit of the usage of available forest land, cultivated ginseng in the farmland would become the mainly Panax ginseng planting mode, meanwhile the non-polluted production technology would be the mainly development direction in the future. In this study, the non-polluted cultivation technology system of P. ginseng was established based on the research results of field investigation in the cultivated regions. The system includes suitable planting regions selecting, planting method, field management, pest control, harvesting & processing, and quality control. Aimed at the serious issues in the cultivation, research strategies have been provided to guarantee the sustainable development of the ginseng industry. The patterns of soil restoration after P. ginseng cultivation, establishment the platform of comprehensive disease & pest control, breeding new varieties for high stress tolerance and resistance, and a traceability system for P. ginseng cultivation. In all, these strategies was considered to largely developing of the ginseng industry in the green and sustainable way.

Authentication Markers for Five Major Panax Species Developed via Comparative Analysis of Complete Chloroplast Genome Sequences.

Ginseng represents a set of high-value medicinal plants of different species: Panax ginseng (Asian ginseng), Panax quinquefolius (American ginseng), Panax notoginseng (Chinese ginseng), Panax japonicus (Bamboo ginseng), and Panax vietnamensis (Vietnamese ginseng). Each species is pharmacologically and economically important, with differences in efficacy and price. Accordingly, an authentication system is needed to combat economically motivated adulteration of Panax products. We conducted comparative analysis of the chloroplast genome sequences of these five species, identifying 34-124 InDels and 141-560 SNPs. Fourteen InDel markers were developed to authenticate the Panax species. Among these, eight were species-unique markers that successfully differentiated one species from the others. We generated at least one species-unique marker for each of the five species, and any of the species can be authenticated by selection among these markers. The markers are reliable, easily detectable, and valuable for applications in the ginseng industry as well as in related research.

Reorganization and socialization of the Kaesong ginseng industry from 1945 to 1958

Reorganization and socialization of the Kaesong ginseng industry from 1945 to 1958

Comparative analysis on industrial standardization degree of Chinese and Korean ginseng

Panax ginseng is a well-known medicinal plant all over the world. It has high nutritional value and medicinal value. China and South Korea are the major countries in the world for ginseng cultivation, production and exportation. China's ginseng production accounts for more than half of the world, but the output value is less than that of Korea. The standardization process of ginseng industry plays an important role. This paper makes a detailed analysis of the Chinese and Korean ginseng national standards and the standardization process, and makes a detailed comparative analysis of the categories, standard contents, index selection, age, implementation and promotion status of the Chinese and Korean ginseng standards. The development disadvantages of ginseng industry standardization were displayed. And we give our advises on the standard revision, implementation of China's ginseng industry standardization, hoping to enhance the competitiveness of China's ginseng industry.

Research on ginseng trade competitiveness between China and Korea

Ginseng is one of China's valuable Chinese herbal medicines, with a long using history. Ginseng has worldwide reputation, and widely used in food, medicine, health products, cosmetics and other production. China and South Korea have a big ginseng industrial, and sharing half of the export market. The ginseng export competitiveness analysis seems important and necessary between China and South Korea. In this paper, the data of customs and trade of ginseng in COMTRADE database were studied, and ginseng export competitiveness was analyzed between China and Korea. The results showed that the ginseng export competitiveness of Korean more competitive than China. Contrast with China, South Korea using only 15% total amount of ginseng exports and produced the same total export amount. This article has the reference value to the traditional Chinese medicine resources management and the economics research. On this basis, this paper further discusses the problems that should be paid attention to in the development of ginseng industry in China.

Changes of diversity and composition of fungal communities in rhizosphere of Panax ginseng

Continuous cropping obstacles resulted in the yield losses of Panax ginseng, and affected the development of ginseng industry. Soil fungal communities participated in the key ecological process, and their changes of diversity and composition were related to the continuous cropping obstacles. We analyzed the changes of fungal diversity and composition in the rhizosphere of ginseng using the high-throughput sequencing method, stated the effects of ginseng cultivation on the micro-ecology, and provided effective strategies for overcoming continuous cropping obstacles. Compared to those of the forest soils, the fungal diversity of ginseng rhizosphere soils was increased, and the increasing trends were declined with an increasing years of ginseng cultivation; the relative abundance of Sordariomycetes, Alatospora, Eurotiomycetes, Leotiomycetes, Saccharomycetes, Mucorales and Pezizomycetes were increased in the rhizosphere of ginseng. Pearson's correlation index indicated that soil chemical perporties affected the relative abundance of fungal communities. pH was significantly related to the relative abundance of Dothideomycetes and Alatospora; the content of available potassium was markedly associated with the relative abundance of Dothideomycetes, Alatospora and Mucorales; the content of total nitrogen was significant correlation with the relative abundance of Sordariomycetes and Mucorales. These results indicated that fertilization was one of pivotal factors affecting the rhizosphere micro-ecology of ginseng, and optimization of fertilization system was an effective method to overcome continuous cropping obstacles.

Current Status of Ginseng Cultivation and Soil Characteristics of Northeastern Three Provinces in China

This study was conducted to improve the continuous techniques for international competitiveness of ginseng industry to Korea-China FTA negotiation and conclusion, and provide the basic information for ginseng industry development of Korea. It was carried out the visiting of the northeastern three provinces (Jilin, Liaoling and Heilongjang) in China for 3-year from 2014 to 2016 and observed the farmers’ fields of ginseng cultivation with soil environmental status. The types of ginseng cultivation could be observed in small scales of 0.5∼3.0 ha, in middle scales of 4.0∼10.0 ha and in large scales of 30∼700 ha with the kinds of imhasam, Chinese ginseng, Korean ginseng and western ginseng. Also ginseng was cultivated in newly reclaimed land of forest in two types of direct seeding and transplanting of ginseng seedlings. The field beds of ginseng growing were covered with vinyl films in arch design of 100∼130 cm height and vinyl was painted in spraying with blue, green and yellow colours for shading. It was investigated in status of the physico-chemical properties of soils. The physical information on the field soils were silt loam, loam and sandy loam in soil textures, and some plain in low slope, some alluvial fan or local valley in forest of land topography. Soil pH ranged within 5.0∼5.2, soil EC was 0.93∼3.78 dS m -1 , organic matter was 37∼35 g kg -1 , nitrate nitrogen 63∼490 mg kg -1 , available P2O5 55∼163 mg kg-1, and in exchangeable cations, K was 0.30∼0.98, Ca was 6.5∼14.0, Mg was 1.1∼5.3 cmolc kg -1 in ranges. Farmers used the fertilizer for ginseng cultivation in 10∼11 t of compost, 200∼400 kg ha - 1 of complex fertilizer and 750 kg ha -1 of oil cakes. The northeastern three provinces of China can use the newly lands with large areas of ginseng cultivation in soil sickness by continuous cropping. and the soil basic fertility is batter than that of Korean in standard guide of ginseng cultivation soil.

Progress in improvement of continuous monoculture cropping problem in Panax ginseng by controlling soil-borne disease management

The continuous monoculture cropping problem severely has hindered the land resource of Panax ginseng cultivation and threatened the sustainable development of ginseng industry. There are comprehensive factors causing the continuous monoculture cropping problem, such as deterioration of soil physical and chemical properties, accumulation of allelochemical, increase of pesticide residue and heavy metal, imbalance of rhizospheric micro-ecosystem, and increase of soil-borne diseases. Among soil-borne disease was one of the key factors. More than 40 soil-borne diseases have been reported in the ginseng cultivation, especially, the diseases were more serious in the ginseng replanting land. Here main soil-borne diseases and their prevention way have been summarized, and we try to provide the effective improvement strategy of continuous monoculture cropping problem focusing on the disease control and offer reference for overcoming the ginseng continuous monoculture cropping problem.

Development of interspecies hybrids to increase ginseng biomass and ginsenoside yield.

Interspecific hybrids between Panax ginseng and P. quinquefolius results in hybrid vigor and higher ginsenoside contents. Ginseng is one of the most important herbs with valued pharmaceutical effects contributing mainly by the presence of bioactive ginsenosides in the roots. However, ginseng industry is impeded largely by its biological properties, because ginseng plants are slow-growing perennial herbs with lower yield. To increase the ginseng yield and amounts of ginsenosides, we developed an effective ginseng production system using the F(1) progenies obtained from the interspecific reciprocal cross between two Panax species: P. ginseng and P. quinquefolius. Although hybrid plants show reduced male fertility, F(1) hybrids with the maternal origin either from P. ginseng or P. quinquefolius displayed heterosis; they had larger roots and higher contents of ginsenosides as compared with non-hybrid parental lines. Remarkably, the F(1) hybrids with the maternal origin of P. quinquefolius had much higher ginsenoside contents, especially ginsenoside Re and Rb1, than those with the maternal origin of P. ginseng. Additionally, non-targeted metabolomic profiling revealed a clear increase of a large number of primary and secondary metabolites including fatty acids, amino acids and ginsenosides in hybrid plants. To effectively identify the F(1) hybrids for the large-scale cultivation, we successfully developed a molecular marker detection system for discriminating F(1) reciprocal hybrids. In summary, this work provided a practical system for reciprocal hybrid ginseng production, which would facilitate the ginseng production in the future.

Cropping system and research strategies in Panax ginseng

Panax ginseng is the king of herbs and plays important roles in the traditional Chinese medicine industry. In this paper, we summarized the development of ginseng cultivation in China and other main countries, analyzed the effects of ecological factors of soil and climate on ginseng distribution, and investigated the characteristic of main cultivation patterns (conversion of forest to cultivate ginseng soils, cultivated ginseng in the farmland and wild nursery). Aimed at the serious issues in the cultivation, research strategies have been provided to guarantee the sustainable development of the ginseng industry. The patterns of cultivated ginseng in the farmland should be strive to develop; pollution-free cultivation and studies of continuous cropping obstacles should be carried out; ginseng varieties suited to ecological environment of farmland should be bred using modern biotechnology.

Challenges and opportunities for the Korean ginseng industry: A plot survey of market expansion among ginseng companies

Challenges and opportunities for the Korean ginseng industry: A plot survey of market expansion among ginseng companies