Ginseng, the natural effectual antiviral: Protective effects of Korean Red Ginseng against viral infection

Im, Kyungtaek; Kim, Jisu; Min, Hyeyoung

The Kang Laboratory (Georgia State University, GA) has published several studies on the immunomodulatory and antiviral effects of KRG extract (RGE) on RSV [19e21] . Although a formalininactivated RSV (FI-RSV) vaccine was developed in the 1960s, immunization with FI-RSV was halted because vaccinated children experienced severe respiratory disease during the natural RSV infection. The severe form of the disease caused by the FI-RSV has been attributed to the strong T-helper type 2 (Th2) immune response, and RGE has been shown to mitigate such Th2 responses by enhancing the T-helper type 1 (Th1) response in F1-RSV immunized mice which have Th2-dominant immune response intrinsically [19] . Thus, RGE-treated mice that were immunized with FI-RSV showed improved clinical outcomes via an increase in the immunoglobulin G2a (IgG2a) antibodies level and interferon (IFN)-g production accompanied by a decrease in IL-4 production and weight loss after RSV infection [19] . The data indicate that RGE possesses an immunomodulatory effect by balancing Th1 and Th2 immune responses, and protects the host from severe pulmonary inflammation upon FI-RSV immunization and RSV infection.