BACKGROUND The dried root of Polygala tenuifolia, named Radix Polygalae, is a well-known traditional Chinese medicine. Triterpenoid saponins are some of the most important components of Radix Polygalae extracts and are widely studied because of their valuable pharmacological properties. However, the relationship between gene expression and triterpenoid saponin biosynthesis in P. tenuifolia is u...

The increase in Na+/K+ transport activity in skeletal muscles exposed to insulin was analysed. Plasma-membrane fractions were prepared from frog (Rana catesbeiana) skeletal muscles, and examination of the Na,K-ATPase (Na+ + K+-dependent ATPase) activity showed that it was insensitive to ouabain. In contrast, plasma-membrane fractions prepared from ouabain-pretreated muscles, by the same procedu...

After exposure of rat myotube cultures to saponin, less than 1% of the cellular protein was found to remain associated with the tissue culture substrate. This substrate-associated material contained approximately 10% of the acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) and greater than 80% of the large, ventral AChR clusters present in the original culture. The domain structure evident in intact cells was ma...

BACKGROUND Chronic heavy alcohol consumption may raise the risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus. Saponins inhibit apoptosis of pancreatic islet cells and reduce lipid parameters. The present study was designed to investigate the effect of saponin on chronic ethanol-treated diabetic rats. METHODS Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (LETO) and Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats were p...

OBJECTIVES Nausea and vomiting are the most frequently reported side-effects by patients who are given general anesthesia perioperatively and patients with cancer who undergo chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5HT) type 3A receptor (5HT(3A) receptor) is known to mediate nausea and vomiting and its antagonists have been used effectively to prevent and/or reduce the inc...

background: holothuroids (sea cucumbers) are members of the phylum echinodermata, which produce saponins. saponins exhibit a wide spectrum of pharmacological and biological activities. in this study, we isolated the crude saponins from the body wall of the dominant iranian species of sea cucumber, holothuria leucospilota (h. leucospilota). the purpose of this study was to confirm the presence o...

objective(s): the purpose of this study was preparation and evaluation of plga nanospheres containing the influenza virus and different adjuvants, quillaja saponin (qs) and cpg-odn.   materials and methods: nanospheres were prepared using the double emulsion-solvent evaporation method. the morphological and physicochemical properties were studied by scanning electron microscopy (sem), determina...