The American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) regularly reviews scientific literature for new research that may be useful to the herbal products and supplement industries. The following are some recent articles published in peer-reviewed journals.
 
Ginseng Supplement Reduces Physical Stress Response 
This investigation examined the constitutive and stress-induced effects of an enzyme-fermented ginseng supplement on hypo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) and antioxidant activity in addition to muscle damage. The supplement produced stress-inducible dose-dependent reductions in circulating cortisol and increased enzymatic and nonspecific antioxidant activity. Twenty-four hours after intense exercise, a high dose of this bioactive ginsenoside metabolite significantly reduced muscle damage and HPA responses to physical stress in humans. These effects may result from increased antioxidant expression.
Journal of Medicinal Food, January 2018
DOI: 10.1089/jmf.2017.0071.
 
Experts Call for NMR Data Transparency in Natural Products Research 
This was a review of a comprehensive demonstration of the immense scientific value of disseminating raw nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) data, independent of, and in parallel with, classical publishing outlets. A comprehensive compilation of historic to present-day cases, as well as contemporary and future applications, showed that addressing the urgent need for a repository of publicly accessible raw NMR data has the potential to transform natural products and associated fields of chemical and biomedical research. Experts from the global natural product research community called for advancing open-sharing mechanisms for raw data to enhance the transparency of experimental protocols; augment the reproducibility of reported outcomes, including in biological studies; become a regular component of responsible research; and thereby enrich the integrity of natural product research and related fields.
Royal Society of Chemistry, July 2018
DOI: 10.1039/c7np00064b.
 
Black Cohosh, Actein Inhibit Human Cancer Cells
This study assessed the transcriptomic effects of black cohosh and actein on rat liver tissue using Ingenuity and ToxFX analyses. Black cohosh and actein inhibited the growth of human breast and colon cancer cells and synergized with the statin simvastatin. Combinations of black cohosh with certain classes of statins could enhance their activity as well as their toxic side effects such as inflammatory liver.
Food and Chemical Toxicology, October 2018
DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2018.06.064. 
 
Hop Cultivars & Beer Crafting: Phytochemical Profile Assessments
Researchers investigated the volatile phytochemical diversity of 30 samples obtained from experimental hybrid and commercial H. lupulus L. plants. Essential oils were analyzed by high-resolution gas chromatography coupled with accurate mass time-of-flight mass spectrometry. A total of 58 secondary metabolites, mainly comprising 18 esters, six monoterpene hydrocarbons, two oxygenated monoterpenes, 20 sesquiterpene hydrocarbons, seven oxygenated sesquiterpenes, and four ketones, were positively or tentatively identified. 
Food Chemistry, March 2018 
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2018.09.082. 
 
Sprouts Exhibit Better Nutritional Values Than Seeds 
This study investigated the effect of germination on the mineral composition (performed by flame absorption atomic spectroscopy), total phenolic content, antioxidant activity, and phenolic profiles (before and after alkaline hydrolysis by high-performance liquid chromatography) of chia, golden flax, evening primrose, phacelia, and fenugreek seeds. Sprouts exhibited better nutritional values than their ungerminated forms.
Food Chemistry, March 2018
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2018.09.081.
 
Bay Leaves: New Tools for Characterization & Quality Control
This study evaluated the potential of gas chromatography combined with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry to profile various bay leaf (Laurus nobilis) products. Thirty-nine authenticated samples representing the true bay leaf and the four commonly substituted species were analyzed. The authors created a statistical model to classify commercial samples accurately including complex mixtures and essential oils. At least three marker compounds were identified for each bay leaf species that could be used to discriminate among them.
Planta Medica, August 2018
DOI: 10.1055/a-0585-5987. 
 
Red & White Ginseng: Variations in Ginsenosides & Immunomodulation 
This paper provided an overview of white ginseng and red ginseng, mainly focusing on their chemical profile and immunomodulation activities. The authors reviewed synergistic effects of ginseng herbal drugs with combinations of other traditional herbal drugs or with synthetic drugs. The use of the zebrafish model for bioactivity testing greatly
improves the prospects for future ginseng research. 
Planta Medica, August 2018
DOI: 10.1055/a-0641-6240. 
 
Goldenseal Product Quality Assessment with Untargeted Mass Spectrometry Based Metabolomics 
This study sought to evaluate potential adulteration in commercial botanical products using untargeted metabolomics using goldenseal dietary supplements as a test case. An untargeted ultraperformance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) metabolomics analysis was performed on 35 commercial products and the results demonstrated the potential for untargeted metabolomics to discriminate between multiple unknown products and predict possible adulteration.
Food and Chemical Toxicology, October 2018
DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2018.07.033. 
 
Simultaneous Determination of Three Most Biologically Active Chemical Families in Citrus Juices 
A new method was developed for the simultaneous determination of the three most biologically active chemical families in citrus juices: methoxylated flavones, coumarins, and furanocoumarins. No rapid methodology has previously been available to determine them together. A solid phase extraction concentrated these groups and a ternary reverse phase HPLC gradient completely resolved them from other juice components.
Food Chemistry, January 2019
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2018.07.130. 
 
Goldenseal Differentiated from Common Adulterants with FT-NIR & Chemometric Analysis
This research demonstrated that NIR spectroscopy coupled with chemometric analyses can be successfully used for rapid detection of goldenseal adulteration in the marketplace. The study evaluated various chemometric models and indicated that selecting a specific approach to chemometric analysis is critical and the optimal model must be determined on a case-by-case basis in order to achieve useful sensitivity and specificity.
Fitoterapia, June 2018
DOI: 10.1016/j.fitote.2018.02.006.
 

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Holly Johnson, PhD
American Herbal Products Association (AHPA)

Holly E. Johnson PhD, is the chief science officer at the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) where she is the primary scientific resource for the organization, providing individualized technical guidance to member organizations and helping the herbal industry use the latest science, technology and research to ensure consumers continue to have informed access to innovative, safe and effective herbal products. Dr. Johnson took her PhD in Pharmacognosy at the College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois – Chicago (UIC), under renowned Pharmacognosist and researcher Dr. Norman Farnsworth. She is currently a Research Associate with the National Tropical Botanical Garden and serves on AOAC Stakeholders Panels and Expert Review Panels for Foods and Dietary Supplements. She is a member of the USP Medical Cannabis Expert Panel, the Editorial Board of the AOAC International Journal, and also serves on the Advisory Boards of the American Botanical Council and the American Herbal Pharmacoepia. She can be reached at hjohnson@ahpa.org; 301-588-1171, ext. 103.