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Review
. 2024 Apr 18:15:1353614.
doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1353614. eCollection 2024.

Pharmacological effects of ginseng and ginsenosides on intestinal inflammation and the immune system

Linxian Zhao #  1 , Tongbo Zhang #  1 , Kai Zhang  1
Affiliations
Review

Pharmacological effects of ginseng and ginsenosides on intestinal inflammation and the immune system

Linxian Zhao et al. Front Immunol. .

Abstract

Intestinal inflammatory imbalance and immune dysfunction may lead to a spectrum of intestinal diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and gastrointestinal tumors. As the king of herbs, ginseng has exerted a wide range of pharmacological effects in various diseases. Especially, it has been shown that ginseng and ginsenosides have strong immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory abilities in intestinal system. In this review, we summarized how ginseng and various extracts influence intestinal inflammation and immune function, including regulating the immune balance, modulating the expression of inflammatory mediators and cytokines, promoting intestinal mucosal wound healing, preventing colitis-associated colorectal cancer, recovering gut microbiota and metabolism imbalance, alleviating antibiotic-induced diarrhea, and relieving the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome. In addition, the specific experimental methods and key control mechanisms are also briefly described.

Keywords: ginseng; ginsenosides; intestinal immune; intestinal inflammation; intestinal system diseases.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The global distribution of the three most common ginseng herbs, with their major ginsenosides.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The possible anti-inflammatory mechanisms of various ginsenosides on intestinal system diseases, including inhibiting proinflammatory cytokines expression and blocking inflammation-related pathways.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The pharmacological effects of various ginsenosides on intestinal inflammation and the immune system, including regulating inflammatory cytokines expression, regulating the immune balance and immune homeostasis, regulating gut microbiota and metabolism, promoting intestinal mucosal wound healing, and preventing colitis-associated colorectal cancer.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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