Skip to main content
NCBI home page
British Journal of Pharmacology logoLink to British Journal of Pharmacology
. 1995 May;115(1):15–18. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1995.tb16313.x

Ginsenosides-induced nitric oxide-mediated relaxation of the rabbit corpus cavernosum.

X Chen 1, T J Lee 1
PMCID: PMC1908743  PMID: 7647970

Abstract

1. Ginsenosides, the active ingredients extracted from Panax ginseng, have been shown to promote nitric oxide (NO) release in bovine aortic endothelial cells. Since the endothelial cells and the perivascular nerves in penile corpus cavernosum contain NO synthase and an NO-like substance has been shown to be released from these cells which relaxes corpus cavernosum, the possibility that ginsenosides may relax corpus cavernosum by releasing endogenous NO was examined. 2. With an in vitro tissue superfusion technique, ginsenosides (250, 500 and 750 micrograms ml-1) relaxed corpus cavernosum, concentration-dependently. 3. Using an in vitro tissue bath technique, acetylcholine (ACh)-induced relaxations were increased in the presence of ginsenosides (250 micrograms ml-1). 4. Ginsenosides at 100 micrograms ml-1 significantly enhanced the tetrodotoxin (TTX)-sensitive relaxation of corpus cavernosum elicited by transmural nerve stimulation. 5. The ginsenosides-induced, ACh-induced and ginsenosides-enhanced transmural nerve stimulation-elicited relaxations were significantly attenuated by NG-nitro-L-arginine (100 microM) and oxyhaemoglobin (oxyHb; 5-10 microM), and were enhanced by superoxide dismutase (SOD; 50 u ml-1). 6. The relaxations and their attenuation by NG-nitro-L-arginine and TTX were associated with increase and decrease in tissue cyclic GMP levels, respectively. 7. It is concluded that ginsenosides may release NO from endothelial cells, and enhance NO release from endothelial cells elicited by other vasoactive substances and from perivascular nitrergic nerves in the corpus cavernosum. These endothelial and neurogenic effects of ginsenosides in inducing relaxation of the corpus cavernosum may account for the aphrodisiac effect of Panax ginseng.

Full text

PDF
15

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Bush P. A., Gonzalez N. E., Ignarro L. J. Biosynthesis of nitric oxide and citrulline from L-arginine by constitutive nitric oxide synthase present in rabbit corpus cavernosum. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 1992 Jul 15;186(1):308–314. doi: 10.1016/s0006-291x(05)80808-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Chen X., Gillis C. N. Enhanced photorelaxation in aorta, pulmonary artery and corpus cavernosum produced by BAY K 8644 or N-nitro-L-arginine. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 1992 Aug 14;186(3):1522–1527. doi: 10.1016/s0006-291x(05)81579-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Chen X., Gillis C. N., Moalli R. Vascular effects of ginsenosides in vitro. Br J Pharmacol. 1984 Jun;82(2):485–491. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1984.tb10784.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Gryglewski R. J., Palmer R. M., Moncada S. Superoxide anion is involved in the breakdown of endothelium-derived vascular relaxing factor. Nature. 1986 Apr 3;320(6061):454–456. doi: 10.1038/320454a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Ignarro L. J., Bush P. A., Buga G. M., Wood K. S., Fukuto J. M., Rajfer J. Nitric oxide and cyclic GMP formation upon electrical field stimulation cause relaxation of corpus cavernosum smooth muscle. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 1990 Jul 31;170(2):843–850. doi: 10.1016/0006-291x(90)92168-y. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Kim H., Chen X., Gillis C. N. Ginsenosides protect pulmonary vascular endothelium against free radical-induced injury. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 1992 Dec 15;189(2):670–676. doi: 10.1016/0006-291x(92)92253-t. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Lee T. J. Cholinergic mechanism in the large cat cerebral artery. Circ Res. 1982 Jun;50(6):870–879. doi: 10.1161/01.res.50.6.870. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Linnik M. D., Lee T. J. Effect of hemoglobin on neurogenic responses and cholinergic parameters in porcine cerebral arteries. J Cereb Blood Flow Metab. 1989 Apr;9(2):219–225. doi: 10.1038/jcbfm.1989.32. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Martin W., Villani G. M., Jothianandan D., Furchgott R. F. Selective blockade of endothelium-dependent and glyceryl trinitrate-induced relaxation by hemoglobin and by methylene blue in the rabbit aorta. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1985 Mar;232(3):708–716. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Moncada S., Palmer R. M., Higgs E. A. Nitric oxide: physiology, pathophysiology, and pharmacology. Pharmacol Rev. 1991 Jun;43(2):109–142. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Rajfer J., Aronson W. J., Bush P. A., Dorey F. J., Ignarro L. J. Nitric oxide as a mediator of relaxation of the corpus cavernosum in response to nonadrenergic, noncholinergic neurotransmission. N Engl J Med. 1992 Jan 9;326(2):90–94. doi: 10.1056/NEJM199201093260203. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. SHIBATA S., TANAKA O., SOMA K., ANDO T., IIDA Y., NAKAMURA H. STUDIES ON SAPONINS AND SAPOGENINS OF GINSENG. THE STRUCTURE OF PANAXATRIOL. Tetrahedron Lett. 1965 Jan;42:207–213. doi: 10.1016/s0040-4039(01)99595-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from British Journal of Pharmacology are provided here courtesy of The British Pharmacological Society

RESOURCES