Despite the potential benefits of herbal medicines for therapeutic application in preventing and treating various metabolic disorders, the mechanisms of action were understood incompletely. Ginseng (Panax ginseng), a commonly employed plant as a dietary supplement, has been reported to play its hot property in increasing body temperature and improving gut health. However, a comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms by which ginseng regulates body temperature and gut health is still incomplete. This paper illustrates that intermittent supplementation with ginseng extracts improved body temperature rhythm and suppressed inflammatory responses in peripheral metabolic organs of propylthiouracil (PTU)-induced hypothermic rats. These effects were associated with changes in gut hormone secretion and the microbiota profile. The in-vitro studies in ICE-6 cells indicate that ginseng extracts can not only act directly on the cell to regulate the genes related to circadian clock and inflammation, but also may function through the gut microbiota and their byproducts such as lipopolysaccharide. Furthermore, administration of PI3K inhibitor blocked ginseng or microbiota-induced gene expression related with circadian clock and inflammation in vitro. These findings demonstrate that the hot property of ginseng may be mediated by improving circadian clock and suppressing inflammation directly or indirectly through the gut microbiota and PI3K-AKT signaling pathways.

尽管草药在预防和治疗各种代谢性疾病方面具有潜在的益处，但其作用机制尚不完全了解。人参（Panax ginseng）是一种常用的膳食补充剂植物，据报道可以发挥其热特性来提高体温和改善肠道健康。然而，对人参调节体温和肠道健康的机制的全面了解仍然不完整。本文说明，间歇性补充人参提取物可改善丙硫氧嘧啶 (PTU) 诱导的低温大鼠的体温节律并抑制外周代谢器官的炎症反应。这些影响与肠道激素分泌和微生物群分布的变化有关。ICE-6细胞的体外研究表明，人参提取物不仅可以直接作用于细胞，调节与生物钟和炎症相关的基因，还可以通过肠道微生物群及其副产物（如脂多糖）发挥作用。此外，体外施用 PI3K 抑制剂可阻断人参或微生物诱导的与生物钟和炎症相关的基因表达。这些发现表明，人参的热特性可能是通过改善生物钟和直接或间接通过肠道微生物群和 PI3K-AKT 信号通路抑制炎症来介导的。