Acanthopanax koreanum is a medicinal plant in the Araliaceae family which has been extensively used in Korea. The roots and stem barks of A. koreanum have been traditionally used as a tonic and to treat rheumatism, hepatitis, and diabetes (Bae, 2000).
The plant contains some notable compounds such as acanthoic acid, (−)-pimara-9(11),15-dien-19-oic which is a pimaradiene diterpene (Kim et al., 1988). A number of triterpenes and lignans have also been examined and have potential as medicinal compounds.
Extracts of the plant containing acanthoic acid are said to have potent anti-inflammatory and antifibrosis effects by reducing Interleukin-1 (IL-1) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) production in cell studies (Kang et al., 1996). Both these cytokines are involved in promoting inflammatory responses and induce the synthesis of other inflammation processes by causing other mediators to be produced. It might be remembered that fibrosis of the lung is one of the consequences of asbestosis and there have been many attempts to find ways of alleviating the condition using pharmacologically derived drugs.
The roots also produce a polysaccharide which has an immunomodulatory effect by increasing certain immune cells such as the B cells and raising antibody production (Han et al., 2003).
There is some suggestion that the extract might be used to treat certain aspects of diabetes but this needs careful examination (Na et al., 2006).
References
Bae, K. (2000) The Medicinal Plants of Korea; Kyo-Hak Publishing: Seoul, pp. 361.
Cai, X. F.; Shen, G.; Dat, N. T.; Kang, O. H.; Kim, J. A.; Lee, Y. M.; Lee, J. J.; Kim, Y. H. (2003) Chem. Pharm. Bull. 51, pp. 605.
Cai, X. F.; Shen, G.; Dat, N. T.; Kang, O. H.; Lee, Y. M.; Lee, J. J.; Kim, Y. H. (2003) Arch. Pharm. Res. 26, pp. 731.
Cai, X. F.; Lee, I. S.; Dat, N. T.; Shen, G.; Kang, J. S.; Kim, D. H.; Kim, Y. H. (2004) Arch. Pharm. Res. 27, pp. 738.
Cai, X. F.; Lee, I. S.; Shen, G.; Dat, N. T.; Lee, J. J.; Kim, Y. H. (2004) Arch. Pharm. Res. 2004, 27, pp. 825.
Cai, X. F.; Lee, I. S.; Dat, N. T.; Shen, G.; Kim, Y. H. (2004) Phytother. Res. 18, pp. 677.
Han, S. B., Park, S. K., Ahn, H. J., Yoon, Y. D., Kim, Y. H., Lee, J. J., … & Kim, H. M. (2003). Characterization of B cell membrane receptors of polysaccharide isolated from the root of Acanthopanax koreanum. International Immunopharmacology, 3(5), pp. 683-691.
Kang, H. S., Kim, Y. H., Lee, C. S., Lee, J. J., Choi, I., & Pyun, K. H. (1996). Suppression of interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor-α production by acanthoic acid,(−)-pimara-9 (11), 15-dien-19-oic acid, and its antifibrotic effects in vivo. Cellular Immunology, 170(2), pp. 212-221
Kim, Y. H., Chung, B. S., & Sankawa, U. (1988). Pimaradiene diterpenes from Acanthopanax koreanum. Journal of Natural Products, 51(6), pp. 1080-1083
Na, M., Oh, W. K., Kim, Y. H., Cai, X. F., Kim, S., Kim, B. Y., & Ahn, J. S. (2006). Inhibition of protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B by diterpenoids isolated from Acanthopanax koreanum. Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 16(11), pp. 3061-3064.
I am doing some research on this fruit because it could be grown easily in the Mediterranean. The acanthoic acid is as you say the most interesting compound in any extract and I think it has significant potential as a medicinal plant for treating a range of conditions if not helping us understand the nature of arthritis and perhaps conditions like sarcoidiosis.