Glycyrrhizin Content Research Articles

Effects of Glycyrrhizin in a Mouse Model of Lung Adenocarcinoma

Background: Currently, there is a global attempt to identify potential anti-cancer agents with low toxicity. Previous studies have found that glycyrrhizin exerts anti-cancer action with low toxicity through suppressing thromboxane A2 (TxA2) in lung cancer cell lines. However, these effects have not yet been determined in animal models of lung cancer. Methods: Human lung adenocarcinoma xenografts were established in nude mice by the introduction of A549 cells with stable transfection of the TxA2 receptor (TPα). The animal model was confirmed by the hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) method. Tumor-bearing mice were then administered graded concentrations of glycyrrhizin, cisplatin or both. After the treatments, body weights of all animals were recorded, and immunohistochemistry staining of lung tissues and serum biochemistry detection of aspartate amino transferase (AST), alanine amino transferase (ALT), urea and creatinine were carried out. Results: Treatment with glycyrrhizin alone or the combination of cisplatin and glycyrrhizin profoundly reduced expression of thromboxane synthase (TxAS) as well as proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), recovered the body weight, and rescued damage of liver and kidney in tumor-bearing mice. Although it inhibited PCNA expression, cisplatin could not significantly suppress TxAS expression. Because of a positive feedback loop between TPα and TxAS, the effects of glycyrrhizin are possibly attributable to the suppression of the TxA2 pathway. Conclusions: This study provides in vivo evidence to support glycyrrhizin as a potential candidate for developing new regimens to overcome tumor progression and the resistance and toxicity of cisplatin.

Genetic and environmental effect on the growth characteristics and bioactive components of eight-year-old Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch

Licorice derived from Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch is an important traditional Chinese medicine. The cultivated licorice has gradually replaced the wild licorice, becoming the main source, while its quality is unstable. To explore the influence of genetic and environment on the quality of cultivated licorice, the growth characteristics and the contents of glycyrrhizin and liquiritin of eight-year-old licorice were analyzed. The growth characteristics and contents of glycyrrhizin and liquiritin of eight-year-old licorice varied in different provenances. Especially, the contents of lycyrrhizin and liquiritin of different sources existed significant variation owing to genetic expression. Further, the growth characteristics were negatively correlated with temperature and moisture, while the contents of glycyrrhizin and liquiritin were positively correlated with temperature and negatively correlated with moisture. It indicated that there were significant geographic variations in the growth of eight-year-old licorice, which was associated with genetic expression and the ecological environment.

Inhibition of High Mobility Group Box 1–Toll-Like Receptor-4 Signaling by Glycyrrhizin Contributes to the Attenuation of Cold Ischemic Injury of Liver in a Rat Model

BackgroundCold ischemic injury in liver storage is an important issue pertaining to liver transplantation. Glycyrrhizin (GL), the glycoconjugated triterpene produced by the root of the licorice plant, has been used to treat chronic hepatitis; however, its function against cold ischemia injury remains unknown. MethodsLivers from Wistar rats were reperfused at 37°C for 60 minutes either immediately or after 24 hours of cold storage in histidine–tryptophan–ketoglutarate (HTK) solution containing different concentrations of GL (n = 30 for each group). Bile and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels in the effluent perfusates were determined. Apoptotic cells, high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), and nuclear factor (NF)-κB in liver grafts were assessed. The levels of inflammatory mediators (tumor necrosis factor [TNF]-α, interleukin [IL]-6) in the effluent perfusates were measured. ResultsAddition of GL to HTK solution significantly attenuated ischemic injury during reperfusion in a dose-dependent way, as evidenced by the lower liver injury scores, lower LDH leakage, and increased bile secretion. After reperfusion, livers stored in HTK solution containing GL had decreased expression of HMGB1, TLR4, and NF-κB, and less apoptosis compared with those stored without GL. The levels of TNF-α and IL-6 in the effluent were also decreased when stored in GL-containing HTK solution. ConclusionThe addition of GL to HTK solution attenuates cold ischemic injury during cold storage and the mechanism is at least partially attributable to the inhibition of TLR4 signaling.

Field Survey of Glycyrrhiza Plants in Central Asia (4). Characterization of G. glabra and G. bucharica Collected in Tajikistan.

The characteristics of 2 Glycyrrhiza plants, G. glabra and G. bucharica (=Meristotropis bucharica), were investigated in Tajikistan. The glycyrrhizin content in the underground parts of G. glabra varied from 2.56 to 9.29% of the dry weight, and the content of glabridin, a species-specific flavonoid of G. glabra, varied from 0.09 to 0.92% of the dry weight. Seeds of G. glabra plants from Tajikistan were cultivated for 3 years in Japan, and the glycyrrhizin content of the harvested roots ranged from 0.75 to 1.82% of the dry weight. In addition, HPLC analysis of leaf extracts indicated that the G. glabra plants collected in Tajikistan could be divided into various types, according to the flavonoid contents of the leaves. The endemic G. bucharica was also collected. A phylogenetic tree of rbcL nucleotide sequences from various Glycyrrhiza plants indicated that G. bucharica was closely related to the three glycyrrhizin-producing Glycyrrhiza spp. (G. uralensis, G. inflata, and G. glabra), even though G. bucharica does not produce glycyrrhizin.

Changes of specific chromatograms and contents of five components in Yinqiao powder decoctions during decocting process

To establish a method for the determination of chemical specific chromatograms and five components in Yinqiao powder decoction, and provide basis for elucidating the scientific connotation of ″taking in when the fragrance volatilized fiercely″. Yinqiao powder decoctions with different decocting times were prepared to study the changes of chemical components during decocting process. Specific chromatograms and contents of chlorogenic acid, phillyrin, arctiin, liquiritin and glycyrrhizin were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. According to the results, the similarities of Yinqiao powder decoctions with different decocting times were high, which indicated that their chemical compositions were similar. The dissolutions of the five components in Yinqiao powder reached more than 39.7% of 2 hour maximum dissolution amounts (MDA) after 20 minutes of soaking, more than 69.5% of MDA when boiling, more than 79.1% of MDA at the 5th minute after boiling, and more than 85.7% of MDA at the 10th minute after boiling. The concentrations of five components were not increasing obviously after 15 minutes of boiling (RSD<4.3%). The fragrance volatilized fiercely at about the 5th minute after boiling, which indicated that the contents of volatile components in Yinqiao powder decoctions were high, but it became weak after boiling for 15 minutes, which indicated that the contents of volatile components in Yinqiao powder decoctions were low. The results showed that the contents of five components in Yinqiao powder decoctions were heavily influenced by the decocting time. When boiling for about 5 minutes, the fragrance volatilized fiercely, both the contents of volatile components and non-volatile components were high. It is suggested that the traditional decocting method has a certain scientific basis.

Fermented So-Cheong-Ryong-Tang (FCY) induces apoptosis via the activation of caspases and the regulation of MAPK signaling pathways in cancer cells.

BackgroundSo-Cheong-Ryong-Tang (CY), a traditional herbal formula, mainly has been shown to possess allergic rhinitis and asthma for hundreds of years in Asian countries. Although this medicine has been attracted Asian scientists with investigating mechanisms of action against inflammatory-related diseases, there is a little available information on the anti-cancer effect of CY, especially on the fermented form (FCY). In this study, we explored the chemopreventive/chemotherapeutic efficacy of FCY against cancer cells and proved the efficacy of FCY through performing in vivo xenograft assay.MethodsCY was fermented with bacteria and lyophilized. For analysis of the constituents of CY and FCY, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-DAD system was performed. To detect the anti-cancer effect of FCY, cell viability assay, caspase activity assay, cell cycle analysis, and Western blot analysis were performed in AGS human gastric cancer cells. The inhibitory effects of tumor growth by CY and FCY were evaluated in athymic nude mice inoculated with HCT116 human colon cancer cells.ResultsAs a result of analyzing the 11components present in CY and FCY, the contents of ephedrine HCl, glycyrrhizin, gingerol, schisandrin, and gomisin A were respectively increased by fermentation in FCY. The treatment of CY or FCY inhibited the viability of AGS cells, interestingly, the inhibition of cancer cell growth was enhanced by fermentation of CY. FCY induced the apoptosis through activating the caspase-3, −8, and −9. Additionally, FCY regulated the activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) including extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), p38, and c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK). In vivo xenografts, administration of FCY significantly inhibited the tumor formation, and improved the anti-tumor effect compared to that of CY in athymic nude mice.ConclusionsFCY indicated significant anti-cancer effects, and its efficacy against tumor formation was improved than that of CY, therefore, FCY might be used for applications of traditional medicine against cancer in modern complementary and alternative therapeutics.Graphical ᅟ

Pharmacokinetics of Maxing Shigan decoction in normal rats and RSV pneumonia model rats by HPLC-MS/MS

To establish a LC-MS/MS method to determine the concentrations of liquiritin, glycyrrhizin, glycyrrhetinic acid, amygdalin, amygdalin prunasin, ephedrine, pseudoephedrine and methylephedrine of Maxing Shigan decoction in rat plasma, and study the differences on their pharmacokinetic process in normal rats and RSV pneumonia model rats. After normal rats and RSV pneumonia model rats were orally administered with Maxing Shigan decoction, the blood was collected from retinal vein plexus of different time points. Specifically, tetrahydropalmatine was taken as internal standard for determining ephedrine, while chloramphenicol was taken as internal standard for determining other components. After plasma samples were pre-treated as the above, the supernatant was dried with nitrogen blowing concentrator and then redissolved with methylalcohol. The chromatography was eluted with mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile and 0.1% formic acid solution in a gradient manner. ESI sources were adopted to scan ingredients in ephedra in a positive ion scanning mode and other ingredientsin a negative ion scanning mode. The multiple-reaction monitoring (MRM) method was developed the plasma concentration of each active component. The pharmacokinetic parameters of each group were calculated by using Win-Nonlin 4.1 software and put into the statistical analysis. The result showed the plasma concentration of the eight active ingredients, i.e., liquiritin, glycyrrhizin, glycyrrhetinic acid, amygdalin, amygdalin prunasin, ephedrine, pseudoephedrine and methylephedrine within the ranges of 1.04-1040, 1.04-1040, 0.89-445, 1.05-4200, 1.25-2490, 0.3-480, 0.3-480, 0.3-480 microg x L(-1), with a good linearity and satisfactory precision, recovery and stability in the above ingredients. After modeling, except for glycyrrhetinic acid whose pharmacokinetic parameters were lacked due to the data missing, all of the rest components showed significant higher Cmax, AUC(0-1) and lower clearance rate (CL) than that of the normal group, indicating the increase in absorption in rats in the pathological state by reducing the clearance rate. The method is accurate and sensitive and so can be used to determine the plasma concentrations of the eight active ingredients in Maxing Shigan decoction. RSV pneumonia-infected rats absorbed more ingredients in Maxing Shigan decoction.

Enhancing ergosterol production in Pichia pastoris GS115 by overexpressing squalene synthase gene from Glycyrrhiza uralensis

The present study was designed to determine the effects of copy number variations (CNVs) of squalene synthase 1(SQS1) gene on the mevalonate (MVA) pathway. SQS1 gene from G. uralensis (GuSQS1) was cloned and over-expressed in Pichia pastoris GS115. Six recombinant P. pastoris strains containing different copy number of GuSQS1 were constructed. HPLC was used to assay the level of ergosterol in all transgenic P. pastoris strains containing GuSQS1. HPLC analysis showed that the contents of ergosterol in all of the transgenic P. pastoris containing GuSQS1 were higher than that in the negative control. And with the increase of copy number of GuSQS1, the content of ergosterol showed an increasing-decreasing-increasing pattern. The contents of ergosterol in 10-copy-GuSQS1 P. pastoris and 47-copy-GuSQS1 P. pastoris were significantly higher than that in the rest recombinant P. pastoris strains. In conclusion, the CNVs of GuSQS1 influence the content of secondary metabolites in the MVA pathway. The present study provides a basis for over-expressing GuSQS1 and increasing the content of glycyrrhizin in G. uralensis cultivars.

The comparative effects of nano and bulk size particles of CuO and ZnO on glycyrrhizin and phenolic compounds contents in Glycyrrhiza glabra L. seedlings

Elicitors such as heavy metals are used to stimulate secondary metabolite production in plants. In this study the effects of bulk and nano size of ZnO and CuO particles on some secondary metabolites were compared in licorice seedlings. To this aim, content of reducing sugars (as precursor of secondary metabolites), proline, glycyrrhizin, total phenolic compounds, flavonoids, anthocyanins and tannins were measured and compared in 21 days seedling of Glycyrrhiza glabra under 1 and 10 µM of each nano particles of zinc oxide, copper oxide (nZnO, nCuO), or bulk size particles of zinc oxide and copper oxide (bZnO, bCuO). Mean of data compared using one-way analysis of variance and Duncan’s test. The concentration of 10 µM bulk size particles of zinc oxide decreased the content of reducing sugars. The contents of glycyrrhizin, total phenolic compounds, flavonoids, anthocyanins and proline were increased by 1 and 10 µM of nZnO and bCuO. 10 µM bZnO treatment increased the content of tannins in G. glabra seedlings. From the results it could be concluded that bulk and nano size ZnO and CuO particles affect secondary metabolite production of licorice seedlings in different patterns.

Determination of bioactive marker glycyrrhizin in Glycyrrhiza glabra root and commercial formulation by validated HPTLC-densitometric method

Objective: To develop a simple sensitive high performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC)densitometric method for quantification of glycyrrhizin in the Glycyrrhiza glabra root methanol extract and licorice root capsule methanol extract. Methods: Chromatography was performed on glass-backed silica gel 60 F254 HPTLC plates with the green solvents ethyl acetate: glacial acetic acid: methanol: water in proportion of 6:2:1:0.5, v/v/ v/v as mobile phase. Scanning and quantification of developed plate was done densitometrically at 254 nm. The method was validated for detection and quantification limits, precision, recovery and robustness according to International Conference on Harmonization guidelines. Results: The system gave compact spot for glycyrrhizin (Rf=0.280依0.001). The regression curve of standard was found to be Y=4.213x+22.078. The limit of detection (15.7 ng per band), limit of quantification (47.1 ng per band), recovery (99.4%-99.8%) and precision (≤1.62% and ≤1.84%; intraday and interday) were satisfactory for glycyrrhizin. Linearity range for glycyrrhizin was 20200 ng (r 2 =0.996). The content of glycyrrhizin was estimated as 5.9% and 11.2% w/w in glycyrrhizin in the Glycyrrhiza glabra root methanol extract and licorice root capsule methanol extract, respectively. Conclusions: This estimation technique is very much useful for the estimation of glycyrrhizin present in various formulations as well as for quality control of crude drugs containing glycyrrhizin.

Chemical interaction between Paeonia lactiflora and Glycyrrhiza uralensis, the components of Jakyakgamcho-tang, using a validated high-performance liquid chromatography method: herbal combination and chemical interaction in a decoction.

The herbal combination is the basic unit of a herbal formula that affects the chemical characteristics of individual herbs. In the present study, a method of simultaneous determination of the 11 marker compounds in Jakyakgamcho-tang was developed using high-performance liquid chromatography with photodiode array detection. The validated analytical method was successfully applied to approach the chemical interaction between Paeonia lactiflora and Glycyrrhiza uralensis in co-decoction. In P. lactiflora, the contents of gallic acid, oxypaeoniflorin, (+)-catechin, paeoniflorin, and benzoylpaeoniflorin were decreased, while those of albiflorin and benzoic acid were increased; in G. uralensis, the contents of liquiritin, isoliquiritin, ononin, and glycyrrhizin were decreased, when decocting two herbs together. Moreover, as the ratio between P. lactiflora and G. uralensis was increased, the contents of chemical contents from each herb were proportionally increased. However, each content of marker compound per the gram of herbal medicine was decreased as the ratio of combinative herbs increased. The results showed that P. lactiflora and G. uralensis affect the extraction efficiency of chemical compounds in a Jakyakgamcho-tang decoction. Overall, the method established in this study was simple, rapid, and accurate, and would be useful for the determination of marker compounds and for the investigation of the chemical interaction between herbal medicines.

Wild-tending techniques study on Glycyrrhiza uralensis Ⅰ- effect of irrigation and rhizome length on survival ratio, yield and quality

This research aimed at studying the effects of irrigation and rhizome length on the survival of ratio, yield and quality of Glycyrrhiza uralensis in wild tending condition. Employed the split-block design to carry out the field experiment, sampled with the quadrat method to measured the relative growth indexes and to estimate the yield, used the HPLC (high performance liquid chromatog- raphy ) method to measure the glycyrrhizin in the rhizome and adventitious root of the G. uralensis in this study. The quantity of the adventitious roots and the survival ratio were increased significantly as the length of the rhizome increased (P < 0.01), but the length of the rhizome had no remarkable effect on the content of glycyrrhizin. The average content of the glycyrrhizin in the adventitious root and rhizome could reach 3.03% and 2.12% after 3-year wild tending, respectively, and this results indicated that the quality of the glycyrrhiza using this method was much better than that from cultured glycyrrhiza with the reproducing method of seeding. so using the rhizome as reproductive material to produce the glycyrrhiza under the wild tending condition could get the high quality glycyrrhiza quick- ly and steadily, this phenomenon could be explained by the Hypothesis of synthetic inertia of the medicinal components from the wild material of G. uralensis. But the maximum yield with this method was just more than 945 kg x hm(-2) in this study. So the further work of how to increase the yield in the practical application with the method found in this study need to be done in the next research.

Screening of Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch. ex DC. containing high concentrations of glycyrrhizin by Eastern blotting and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using anti-glycyrrhizin monoclonal antibody for selective breeding of licorice.

A rapid selection system was used to screen Glycyrrhiza uralensis plants containing high concentrations of glycyrrhizin (GC) by Eastern blotting using anti-GC monoclonal antibody (MAb). Chromatographic fingerprinting by Eastern blotting correlated with the GC concentration analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The roots of wild G. uralensis growing in Mongolia were analyzed by Eastern blotting to identify plants containing high concentrations of GC, and the GC concentration was confirmed by ELISA. G. uralensis plants cultivated in the greenhouse were also analyzed in the same manner. GC concentrations in wild G. uralensis roots and cultivated plants varied widely: between 0.06 and 9.36 percent dry weight (dw%). To confirm the homogeneity of GC concentrations in the cultivated plants, we monitored GC concentrations in the plants over 2 years. Although GC concentrations changed in two plants, they remained comparatively constant in the other five plants, suggesting that GC concentrations are genetically determined. To identify high GC-producing plants, 1025 plants were analyzed, and the highest concentration of GC was 5.36 dw%.

The effect of drought stress on the expression of key genes involved in the biosynthesis of triterpenoid saponins in liquorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra)

Glycyrrhiza glabra is an important medicinal plant throughout the world. Glycyrrhizin is a triterpenoid that is among the most important secondary metabolites produced by liquorice. Drought stress is proposed to enhance the levels of secondary metabolites. In this study, the effect of drought stress on the expression of important genes involved in the glycyrrhizin biosynthetic pathway was examined. Drought stress at the seedling stage was applied to 8-day-old plants using polyethylene glycol. Subsequently, the samples were collected 0, 4, 8 or 24h post-treatment. At the adult plant stage, 10-month-old plants were subjected to drought stress by discontinuing irrigation. Subsequently, samples were collected at 2, 16 and 28days after drought imposition (S2d, S16d and S28d, respectively). We performed semi-quantitative RT-PCR assays to evaluate the gene expression levels of sequalene synthase (SQS), β-amyrin synthase (bAS), lupeol synthase (LUS) and cycloartenol synthase (CAS) during stress. Finally, the glycyrrhizin content of stolons was determined via HPLC. The results revealed that due to osmotic stress, the gene expression levels of SQS and bAS were increased, whereas those of CAS were relatively unchanged at the seedling stage. At the adult plant stage, the expression levels of SQS and bAS were increased under drought stress conditions, whereas the gene expression level of CAS remained relatively constant. The glycyrrhizin content in stolons was increased only under severe drought stress conditions (S28d). Our results indicate that application of controlled drought stress up-regulates the expression of key genes involved in the biosynthesis of triterpenoid saponins and directly enhances the production of secondary metabolites, including glycyrrhizin, in liquorice plants.

Comparative Analysis of Antibacterial Properties and Chemical Composition of Glycyrrhiza glabra L. from Astrakhan Region (Russia) and Calabria Region (Italy)

We compared antibacterial activity of various extracts of two licorice subspecies against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Bacillus subtilis. Diethyl carbonate extracts of Glycyrrhiza glabra root from Astrakhan region (Russia) exhibited maximum activity against the test microbial strains; activity of Astrakhan licorice was superior among 50% ethanol extracts from Astrakhan (Russia) and Calabria (Italy). Antibacterial activity is directly proportional to the content of glycyrrhizin and 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid in the extracts. According to preliminary data, the content of these chemical components in Glycyrrhiza glabra root from Astrakhan region is higher than in licorice growing in Italy, which is presumably related to climate and geographic characteristics of Astrakhan region.

A Simple Semi‐preparative Reversed‐phase HPLC/PDA Method for Separation and Quantification of Glycyrrhizin in Nine Samples of Glycyrrhiza glabra Root Collected from Different Geographical Origins

Glycyrrhiza glabra L. (Fabaceae), commonly known as 'liquorice', is one of the most popular ingredients in several traditional herbal medicinal preparations, and glycyrrhizin is the major glycoside present in this plant. The content of glycyrrhizin may vary among G. glabra samples collected from various geographical origins, which may affect the therapeutic efficacy. Thus, quantification of glycyrrhizin in G. glabra samples is important. To develop and validate a simple semi-preparative reversed-phase HPLC with photodiode array (PDA) method for separation and quantification of glycyrrhizin in nine samples of G. glabra root collected from various geographical origins. Dried and ground root of G. glabra was Soxhlet-extracted sequentially with n-hexane and methanol (MeOH). The separation and quantification of glycyrrhizin was achieved on a C18 reversed-phase semi-preparative column using a gradient mobile phase, 30-100% solvent B in solvent A in 30 min (solvent A: 0.1% v/v trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) in water and solvent B: 0.1% v/v of TFA in MeOH), at a flow rate of 3.00 mL/min and UV detection at 254 nm. A simple semi-preparative reversed-phase HPLC/PDA method allowing clear separation and quantification of glycyrrhizin content in nine samples has been validated in terms of linearity, selectivity, limits of detection, precision, accuracy and detection. Concentration levels of glycyrrhizin were between 0.177 and 0.688% w/w of dry materials. This method is precise, less time consuming and more cost effective, and can be used for the quality control of any G. glabra sample with regard to its glycyrrhizin contents.

Distribution patterns of the contents of five active components in taproot and stolon of Glycyrrhiza uralensis.

Wild or cultivated Glycyrrhiza uralensis FISCHER (G. uralensis) are the main source of licorice, and they contain the similar compounds, such as the triterpenoid saponins and flavonoids, but above two kinds of the components contents are low level in the cultivated licorice. To produce the high quality cultivated licorices, researchers studied the affecting factors about the compounds producing in the plant of licorice, and then found that the growth years, genetic differences and water deficit are all the important factors. In this paper, we found that there were different distribution patterns of the main five active components (FAC) including glycyrrhizin, liquiritin, isoliquiritin, liquiritigenin and isoliquiritigenin in the taproot and stolon of G. uralensis and maybe they are also important influence factors to the FAC contents of the licorices. In wild G. uralensis, the contents of FAC tended to be lower in the younger parts of the stolon, and in the cultivated G. uralensis taproot, the contents of glycyrrhizin, liquiritin and isoliquiritin tended to increase from top to end, contrary to the contents of liquiritigenin and isoliquiritigenin, which increased first and then decreased. Our results will contribute to the analyses of factors which influence the quality of licorice, and provide some reference for cultivating high quality licorices for herbal medicine.

Comparison of biological activities of Glycyrrhiza glabra and G. uralensis

The biological activities of Glycyrrhiza (GLs) extracts (GL-1, Glycyrrhiza glabra from Eumseong, Korea; GL-2, G. uralensis from Eumseong, Korea; GL-3, G. uralensis from Yeongcheon, Korea; GL-4, G. uralensis from Neimenggu, China: GL-5, G. uralensis purchased from Korea Medicine Herbal Association, Korea) were investigated. G. uralensis (GLs-2, -3, -4, and -5) extracts exhibited higher free radical scavenging activity against DPPH and OH radicals than G. glabra (GL-1). In addition, all GLs had antibacterial activity against E. coli, S. aureus, and H. pylori. GL-3 inhibited the growth of E. coli and S. aureus, while GL-1 had antibacterial activity against H. pylori. All GL extracts tested inhibited the lipopolysaccharide- and interferon-γ-induced inflammatory activity of RAW 264.7 cells. G. glabra and G. uralensis reduced NO generation. GL-3 also inhibited the growth of AGS human gastric adenocarcinoma cells. GLs-3 and -4 showed the inhibition of rat lens aldose reductase. GL-4 had a higher total content of glycyrrhizin (1), glycyrrhetinic acid (2), glabridin (3), and isoliquiritigenin (4). G. uralensis (GLs-2, -3, -4, and -5) is thus more effective than G. glabra (GL-1).

Aim for production of Glycyrrhizae Radix in Japan (3): development of a new licorice cultivar

The development of cultivars is indispensable for the establishment of a method aimed at producing licorice in Japan. The cultivar should have the following attributes: (1) the underground parts should grow vigorously; (2) the glycyrrhizin (GL) content must be 2.5 % or greater; and (3) the architecture of the aerial parts should be erect. A new cultivar suitable for the domestic production of licorice was developed by crossbreeding between strain A-19 (with a high GL content) as the mother and strain G-6 (with vigorous growth) as the father. After 2 years of cultivation, strain C-2 exhibited vigorous growth; the fresh weight and stem diameter were 148.8 g and 0.89 mm, respectively. Moreover, the dry-weight GL and total flavonoid contents of the new cultivar (strain C-2) from cultured plants were 3.61 and 1.365 %, respectively.

Study on Enzymatic Synthesis of γ-Cyclodextrin with β-Cyclodextrin

Gamma cyclodextrin was produced synthesized from beta cyclodextrin in the presence of glycyrrhizin, using Cyclodextrin glucanotransferase (EC 2.4.1.19) from AlkalophilicBacillus. The results showed that more than 32.7% of beta cyclodextrin substrate was converted to the corresponding gamma cyclodextrin under the following conditions, viz. 200 units enzyme/g of β-CD, 10mmol/L of β-CD concentration, 3% of glycyrrhizin concentration, 27 h of reaction time, 65°C of temperature and a reaction pH of 7.0.