We investigated the stress-induced changes in the lipid and hormonal concentrations in plasma, including cytochrome P450 (CYP)-derived oxidative stress in the liver, and the anti-stress effect of Korean Red Ginseng (KRG) water extract in mice. Stress induction using restraint increased the levels of corticosterone (CORT), glucose, total cholesterol (TC), and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) while decreasing in the levels of insulin and high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), compared with those of unstressed mice. Restraint-stress also increased the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in plasma by 5.4-fold. Moreover, the stress resulted in a 2.8-fold higher production of C-reactive protein (CRP) than the control group. In addition, the catalytic activities of CYP1A2 and CYP3A4 in the liver microsomes were stimulated by 5.5- and 3.8-fold, respectively, and concomitant ROS formation was elevated by 4.3-fold in the liver extract, compared to the normal group. In contrast, the KRG treatment (5, 20, or 50 mg/kg/day) to stress-exposed 3 groups alleviated the increased CORT, TC, LDL-C, ROS, and CRP levels and restored the decreased insulin concentrations. The enhanced each ROS in the plasma and liver, and the CYP enzyme activities were also attenuated in KRG-treated mice in a concentration-dependent manner. In conclusion, these results suggest that KRG ameliorates stress-induced detrimental effects on the plasma and liver of treated mice.

Abstract
INTRODUCTION
MATERIALS AND METHODS
    Korean Red Ginseng water extract
    Animals
    Stress induction and Korean Red Ginseng treatment
    Biochemical analysis of plasma and liver
    Preparation of the microsomal fraction
    Cytochrome P450 enzyme assay
    Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction
    Statistical analysis
RESULTS
    Stress-mediated changes in plasma lipids, hormones, reactive oxygen species andC-reactive protein
    Stress-induced liver injury
    Anti-stress effects of Korean Red Ginseng
DISCUSSION
References

• Chun-Sik Bae(College of Veterinary Medicine, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Korea)
• Taeho Ahn(College of Veterinary Medicine, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Korea) Corresponding author
• Youngchan Lee(Blooming Animal Hospital, Gwangju 61262, Korea)