Modern research suggested that herbal medicines could be used as adjuvants for cancer symptom management and cancer therapeutics [44] and [45]. To explore the potential role of AG in colorectal cancer chemoprevention, it is necessary to integrate existing traditional knowledge of diseases with modern biomedical technologies [46]. Data reported in this study suggested that AG, as a candidate of botanical-based colon cancer chemoprevention, should be further investigated for its potential clinical utility. The authors have no potential conflicts of interest. This work was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health/National

Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NIH/NCCAM) grants P01 AT 004418 and K01 AT005362, the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (BK2008194), Jiangsu Overseas

ATR inhibitor Research and Training Program for University Prominent Young and Middle-aged Teachers and Presidents, Science and Technology Project of the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicines in Jiangsu Province (LZ11163), China. “
“Glucocorticoids (GCs) are used most extensively as anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive Akt inhibitor drugs to treat a variety of diseases such as inflammation, cancer, and autoimmune disorders. However, protracted usage or a large dose of GC may be the main reason of osteoporosis. GCs have been reported to exhibit detrimental effects on the proliferation and function of osteoblasts. For example, dexamethasone Sinomenine (Dex), a synthetic GC hormone, has been described to inhibit the synthesis of both fibronectin and collagen, as well as stimulating collagenase synthesis [1] and [2]. Evidence has shown that GCs induce apoptosis in both bone and cartilage, causing excessive or premature loss of osteoblast precursors, osteocytes,

and articular and growth plate chondrocytes [3]. The mechanism of GC-induced apoptotic cell death is not elucidated. Weinstein et al [4] demonstrated that prednisone increases the rate of apoptosis in both osteoblasts and osteocytes in adult mice. Gohel et al [5] also reported that corticosterone induces apoptosis in rat and mouse osteoblasts by decreasing the Bcl2/Bax ratio. In addition, Chua et al [6] showed that Dex-induced apoptosis is involved in the activation of several types of caspase genes. All these effects lead to decreased bone formation, ultimately causing bone disease and osteoporosis [7]. For over 2,000 years, ginseng (Panax ginseng Meyer) has been regarded as the most important herbal medicine traditionally in East Asia. Currently, ginseng is one of the extensively used botanical products in the world [8]. It is associated with intrinsic attributes such as antioxidant, anticancer, antidiabetic, and antiadipogenic activities [9] and [10]. Few studies have investigated the antiosteoporotic activity of ginseng [11].