{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,25]],"date-time":"2026-02-25T15:19:25Z","timestamp":1772032765132,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"5","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,25]],"date-time":"2026-02-25T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1771977600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"2023 National Training Program for Talents in the Inheritance of Characteristic Traditional Chinese Medicine Techniques","award":["T20234832005"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["T20234832005"]}]},{"name":"2022 National TCM Processing Technology Inheritance Base Construction Project","award":["59"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["59"]}]},{"name":"The Jilin Provincial Scientific and Technological Development Program","award":["YDZJ202401070ZYTS"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["YDZJ202401070ZYTS"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJMS"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Ginseng (Panax ginseng C. A. Mey.), a traditional Chinese medicine, exhibits spleen-fortifying, anti-inflammatory, and anti-ulcerative colitis (UC) effects. Rice-fried ginseng (RFG), prepared by stir-frying with rice together, yields a marked enrichment of rare ginsenosides, which is hypothesized to enhance its anti-inflammatory and anti-UC effects. Therefore, in this study, the chemical compositions of RFG and sun-dried ginseng (SDG) were systematically compared using LC\u2013MS combined with MS-DIAL, and their protective effects against UC were evaluated using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced Caco-2 cells and a dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced UC mouse model. Rice-frying markedly altered the chemical composition of ginseng, and a total of 64 major compounds were identified, of which 31 increased and 33 decreased after processing. These compositional changes were associated with enhanced anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects of RFG. Consistently, RFG enhanced Caco-2 cell viability, decreased TNF-\u03b1, IL-1\u03b2, and IL-6, and increased ZO-1, occludin, claudin-1, and E-cadherin. In DSS-induced UC mice, RFG attenuated body weight loss, reduced DAI, increased colon length, and decreased the spleen index, accompanied by improved histopathology, reduced pro-inflammatory cytokine levels, and increased expression of tight-junction proteins (TJPs) in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, RFG ameliorated DSS-induced gut microbiota dysbiosis. Metabolomics and network pharmacology analyses highlighted disturbances in linoleic acid and arachidonic acid metabolism and emphasized the involvement of the PI3K\u2013Akt and NF-\u03baB signaling pathways. Western blotting demonstrated decreased phosphorylation of PI3K, Akt, IKK\u03b2, and NF-\u03baB after RFG intervention. Overall, compared with SDG, RFG showed stronger protective effects in vitro and in vivo, accompanied by improved inflammatory readouts, altered lipid-related metabolites and gut microbiota profiles, and reduced phosphorylation of PI3K, Akt, IKK\u03b2, and NF-\u03baB.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms27052140","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,25]],"date-time":"2026-02-25T13:37:37Z","timestamp":1772026657000},"page":"2140","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Rice-Fried and Sun-Dried Ginseng: A Comparative Study of Chemical Composition and Protective Effects Against Ulcerative Colitis"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"27","author":[{"given":"Qi","family":"Chu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Pharmacy, Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun 130117, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yidan","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Pharmacy, Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun 130117, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Junbao","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Pharmacy, Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun 130117, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Jiaying","family":"Sun","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Pharmacy, Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun 130117, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Guanlin","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Pharmacy, Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun 130117, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Hongmei","family":"Gao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Pharmacy, Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun 130117, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,25]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"763","DOI":"10.1097\/CM9.0000000000003542","article-title":"Epidemiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of inflammatory bowel disease: Insights from the past two years","volume":"138","author":"Wan","year":"2025","journal-title":"Chin. Med. J."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"892","DOI":"10.1016\/j.tips.2024.08.003","article-title":"Ulcerative colitis: Clinical biomarkers, therapeutic targets, and emerging treatments","volume":"45","author":"Wangchuk","year":"2024","journal-title":"Trends Pharmacol. Sci."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2412551","DOI":"10.1002\/advs.202412551","article-title":"Temporal and Spatial Metabolic Shifts Revealing the Transition from Ulcerative Colitis to Colitis-Associated Colorectal Cancer","volume":"12","author":"Sun","year":"2025","journal-title":"Adv. Sci."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"42","DOI":"10.1186\/s43556-024-00207-w","article-title":"Ulcerative colitis: Molecular insights and intervention therapy","volume":"5","author":"Liang","year":"2024","journal-title":"Mol. Biomed."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"107662","DOI":"10.1016\/j.phrs.2025.107662","article-title":"Systematic druggable genome-wide Mendelian randomization to identify therapeutic targets and dominant flora for ulcerative colitis","volume":"213","author":"Ou","year":"2025","journal-title":"Pharmacol. Res."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"106406","DOI":"10.3748\/wjg.v31.i19.106406","article-title":"Comparative study on the pathogenesis of Crohn\u2019s disease and ulcerative colitis","volume":"31","author":"Yang","year":"2025","journal-title":"World J. Gastroenterol."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"691","DOI":"10.1111\/jebm.12649","article-title":"Outcomes reporting in clinical trials of Chinese herbal medicine on ulcerative colitis: A systematic review","volume":"17","author":"Zhang","year":"2024","journal-title":"J. Evid.-Based Integr. Med."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"156539","DOI":"10.1016\/j.phymed.2025.156539","article-title":"Targeting ferroptosis in the treatment of ulcerative colitis by traditional Chinese medicine: A novel therapeutic strategies","volume":"139","author":"Liu","year":"2025","journal-title":"Phytomedicine"},{"key":"ref_9","unstructured":"Pharmacopoeia, C.N. (2025). Pharmacopoeia of People\u2019s Republic of China, China Medical Science Press. [Part 1]."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"133925","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijbiomac.2024.133925","article-title":"Isolation, structure, biological activity and application progress of ginseng polysaccharides from the Araliaceae family","volume":"276","author":"Liu","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Biol. Macromol."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100271","DOI":"10.3748\/wjg.v31.i9.100271","article-title":"Network pharmacology and in vivo study: Unraveling the therapeutic mechanisms of Panax ginseng in potentially treating ulcerative colitis","volume":"31","author":"Qin","year":"2025","journal-title":"World J. Gastroenterol."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"130822","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijbiomac.2024.130822","article-title":"Ginseng polysaccharides ameliorate ulcerative colitis via regulating gut microbiota and tryptophan metabolism","volume":"265","author":"Wan","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Biol. Macromol."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"155474","DOI":"10.1016\/j.phymed.2024.155474","article-title":"Ginsenosides from Panax ginseng as potential therapeutic candidates for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease","volume":"127","author":"Niu","year":"2024","journal-title":"Phytomedicine"},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Qi, Y., Wang, W., Yang, T., Ding, W., and Xu, B. (2025). Maillard Reaction in Flour Product Processing: Mechanism, Impact on Quality, and Mitigation Strategies of Harmful Products. Foods, 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/foods14152721"},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"303","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jare.2024.01.003","article-title":"Rare ginsenosides: A unique perspective of ginseng research","volume":"66","author":"Fan","year":"2024","journal-title":"J. Adv. Res."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Jang, W.Y., Hwang, J.Y., and Cho, J.Y. (2023). Ginsenosides from Panax ginseng as Key Modulators of NF-\u03baB Signaling Are Powerful Anti-Inflammatory and Anticancer Agents. Int. J. Mol. Sci., 24.","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms24076119"},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Li, S., Huo, X., Qi, Y., Ren, D., Li, Z., Qu, D., and Sun, Y. (2022). The Protective Effects of Ginseng Polysaccharides and Their Effective Subfraction against Dextran Sodium Sulfate-Induced Colitis. Foods, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/foods11060890"},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Yu, H., Wang, C., Wu, J., Wang, Q., Liu, H., Li, Z., He, S., Wang, C., and Liu, J. (2024). Study on the Anti-Ulcerative Colitis Effect of Pseudo-Ginsenoside RT4 Based on Gut Microbiota, Pharmacokinetics, and Tissue Distribution. Int. J. Mol. Sci., 25.","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms25020835"},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"573","DOI":"10.1016\/S2468-1253(24)00390-X","article-title":"The intestinal barrier: A pivotal role in health, inflammation, and cancer","volume":"10","author":"Neurath","year":"2025","journal-title":"Lancet. Gastroenterol. Hepatol."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"D1670","DOI":"10.1093\/nar\/gkae973","article-title":"Generic Diagramming Platform (GDP): A comprehensive database of high-quality biomedical graphics","volume":"53","author":"Jiang","year":"2025","journal-title":"Nucleic Acids Res."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"223","DOI":"10.1038\/cr.2011.13","article-title":"NF-\u03baB in immunobiology","volume":"21","author":"Hayden","year":"2011","journal-title":"Cell Res."},{"key":"ref_22","first-page":"935","article-title":"Effects of mesalazine combined with bifid triple viable on intestinal flora, immunoglobulin and levels of cal, MMP-9, and MPO in feces of patients with ulcerative colitis","volume":"24","author":"Jiang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Eur. Rev. Med. Pharmacol. Sci."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"73","DOI":"10.1080\/17474124.2024.2326838","article-title":"Histologic assessments in ulcerative colitis: The evidence behind a new endpoint in clinical trials","volume":"18","author":"Pai","year":"2024","journal-title":"Expert. Rev. Gastroenterol. Hepatol."},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Nakai, D., and Miyake, M. (2024). Intestinal Membrane Function in Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Pharmaceutics, 16.","DOI":"10.3390\/pharmaceutics16010029"},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"116438","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jep.2023.116438","article-title":"Effective substances and mechanism of red ginseng on rats with spleen-deficiency syndrome based on the substance and energy metabolism as well as the \u201cbrain-gut\u201d axis","volume":"311","author":"Zhang","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. Ethnopharmacol."},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"105263","DOI":"10.1016\/j.phrs.2020.105263","article-title":"Chemical constituents of Panax ginseng and Panax notoginseng explain why they differ in therapeutic efficacy","volume":"161","author":"Liu","year":"2020","journal-title":"Pharmacol. Res."},{"key":"ref_27","first-page":"1384","article-title":"Optimization of processing technology of rice fried ginseng based on Box Behnken response surface method and analytic hierarchy process combined with entropy method","volume":"34","author":"Jing","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. Li-Shizhen Tradit. Chin. Med."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"79","DOI":"10.3831\/KPI.2020.23.012","article-title":"Variations in Ginsenosides of Raw Ginseng According to Heating Temperature and Time","volume":"23","author":"Kim","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Pharmacopunct."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Lin, Y., Li, G., Wu, S., Li, X., Luo, X., Tan, D., and Luo, Y. (2023). Study on the Mechanism of Phenylacetaldehyde Formation in a Chinese Water Chestnut-Based Medium during the Steaming Process. Foods, 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/foods12030498"},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Qiu, Y., Wang, N., Yu, Z., Guo, X., and Yang, M. (2024). Changes in the chemical composition and medicinal effects of black ginseng during processing. Front. Pharmacol., 15.","DOI":"10.3389\/fphar.2024.1425794"},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"424","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jgr.2019.04.001","article-title":"Remarkable impact of amino acids on ginsenoside transformation from fresh ginseng to red ginseng","volume":"44","author":"Liu","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Ginseng Res."},{"key":"ref_32","first-page":"235","article-title":"Determination of saponin components and their cleavage laws in rice-fried ginseng before and after concoction by ultra performance liquidchromatography-quadrupole-orbitrap-mass spectrometry","volume":"15","author":"Jing","year":"2024","journal-title":"J. Food Saf. Qual."},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Li, X., Yao, F., Fan, H., Li, K., Sun, L., and Liu, Y. (2018). Intraconversion of Polar Ginsenosides, Their Transformation into Less-Polar Ginsenosides, and Ginsenoside Acetylation in Ginseng Flowers upon Baking and Steaming. Molecules, 23.","DOI":"10.3390\/molecules23040759"},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"117053","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jpba.2025.117053","article-title":"LC-MS-based 3 M profiling strategy and network pharmacology reveal ginsenoside diversity and bioactivity transformation during decoction of the Shengmai formula","volume":"265","author":"Liu","year":"2025","journal-title":"J. Pharm. Biomed. Anal."},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"eaau6085","DOI":"10.1126\/sciimmunol.aau6085","article-title":"Structure and function of the immune system in the spleen","volume":"4","author":"Lewis","year":"2019","journal-title":"Sci. Immunol."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"923","DOI":"10.1242\/jcs.093773","article-title":"Classes of phosphoinositide 3-kinases at a glance","volume":"127","author":"Jean","year":"2014","journal-title":"J. Cell Sci."},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"83","DOI":"10.1016\/j.chom.2020.12.003","article-title":"Immunoglobulin A Targets a Unique Subset of the Microbiota in Inflammatory Bowel Disease","volume":"29","author":"Shapiro","year":"2021","journal-title":"Cell Host Microbe"},{"key":"ref_38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"120710","DOI":"10.1016\/j.talanta.2020.120710","article-title":"Integrated strategy for accurately screening biomarkers based on metabolomics coupled with network pharmacology","volume":"211","author":"Zhang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Talanta"},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"94","DOI":"10.1038\/s41392-020-00443-w","article-title":"Metabolism pathways of arachidonic acids: Mechanisms and potential therapeutic targets","volume":"6","author":"Wang","year":"2021","journal-title":"Signal Transduct. Target. Ther."},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"127","DOI":"10.1016\/j.chroma.2019.04.028","article-title":"The potential of nanoflow liquid chromatography-nano electrospray ionisation-mass spectrometry for global profiling the faecal metabolome","volume":"1600","author":"Chetwynd","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Chromatogr. A"},{"key":"ref_41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"135","DOI":"10.1016\/j.plefa.2012.08.004","article-title":"Lowering dietary linoleic acid reduces bioactive oxidized linoleic acid metabolites in humans","volume":"87","author":"Ramsden","year":"2012","journal-title":"Prostaglandins Leukot. Essent. Fat. Acids"},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1602","DOI":"10.1021\/acscentsci.0c00791","article-title":"Pairing Bacteroides vulgatus LPS Structure with Its Immunomodulatory Effects on Human Cellular Models","volume":"6","author":"Pither","year":"2020","journal-title":"ACS Cent. Sci."},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1339","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cell.2016.10.043","article-title":"A Dietary Fiber-Deprived Gut Microbiota Degrades the Colonic Mucus Barrier and Enhances Pathogen Susceptibility","volume":"167","author":"Desai","year":"2016","journal-title":"Cell"},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"97","DOI":"10.1038\/s41538-024-00339-x","article-title":"Akkermansia muciniphila ONE effectively ameliorates dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced ulcerative colitis in mice","volume":"8","author":"Zhang","year":"2024","journal-title":"NPJ Sci. Food"},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"115690","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jep.2022.115690","article-title":"Xianglian Pill attenuates ulcerative colitis through TLR4\/MyD88\/NF-\u03baB signaling pathway","volume":"300","author":"Dai","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. Ethnopharmacol."}],"container-title":["International Journal of Molecular Sciences"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1422-0067\/27\/5\/2140\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,25]],"date-time":"2026-02-25T13:39:05Z","timestamp":1772026745000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1422-0067\/27\/5\/2140"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,25]]},"references-count":45,"journal-issue":{"issue":"5","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3]]}},"alternative-id":["ijms27052140"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/ijms27052140","relation":{},"ISSN":["1422-0067"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1422-0067","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,25]]}}}