Dioscorea villosa.  Wild yam, Colic root   Family: Dioscoreaceae  
PART USED: Root and rhizome
TASTE: Insipid at first, then acrid ODORLESS
ACTIONS
GROUP: The Musculo-Skeletal System- Antispasmodics
1. Anti-inflammatory.[1,2,4]
2. Anti-rheumatic.[1,2] Spasmolytic.[4]
3. Mild Diaphoretic.[4]
4. Cholagogue.[1,2,4] Hepatic.
INDICATIONS
1. Gastrointestinal tract- Hiccoughs. Intestinal cramping.[4] Flatulence. Diverticulitis. Bilious colic.[1,2,4] Intestinal colic.
2. Rheumatoid arthritis,[1,2,4] especially in the acute stage.[1,2] Muscular rheumatism.[1,2] Cramps and intermittent claudication.[1,2]
3. Ovarian or uterine pain.[1,2] Dysmenorrhea.[4] As a pregnancy tonic to allay nausea.  Relieve cramps and prevent miscarriage.
4. Liver disorders. Cholecystitis.[1,2] Gall-stone colic.
5. Neuralgia. Nervous excitability.
6. Bronchitis, asthma. Whooping cough.
7. Spasm or pain affecting the urinary tract.
COMBINATIONS
PREPARATIONS:
Dried underground parts 2-4 g, or by infusion or decoction 1:20
Fluid extract  1:1 in 45%  alcohol 2-4 ml.[4] 1:1 in 60% alcohol.[3]
Tincture 1:5 in 45%  2-10 ml .[1,2]

ORIGIN: Eastern and central USA and in some tropical countries.
DESCRIPTION: Tubers cylindrical, pale brown, compressed, about 10-15 cm long and 1-2 cm thick, curved, branched at intervals, showing stems scars on the upper surface and rootlets on the lower. Occurs in commerce as hard, pale yellowish-brown chips of rhizome and narrow, fribrous roots. Fracture short, hard.
References
Inner Path can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
Constituents
Research

Effects of Wild Yam Root ( Dioscorea villosa) Extract on the Gene Expression Profile of Triple-negative Breast Cancer Cells
Elizabeth Mazzio, Abdulaziz Almalki, Selina F Darling-Reed, Karam F A Soliman
Abstract
Background/aim: Wild yam extract [Dioscorea villosa, (WYE)] is consistently lethal at low IC50s across diverse cancer-lines in vitro. Unlike traditional anti-cancer botanicals, WYE contains detergent saponins which reduce oil-water interfacial tensions causing disintegration of lipid membranes and causing cell lysis, creating an interfering variable. Here, we evaluate WYE at sub-lethal concentrations in MDA-MB-231 triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells.
Materials and methods: Quantification of saponins, membrane potential, lytic death and sub-lethal WYE changes in whole transcriptomic (WT) mRNA, miRNAs and biological parameters were evaluated.
Results: WYE caused 346 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) out of 48,226 transcripts tested; where up-regulated DEGS reflect immune stimulation, TNF signaling, COX2, cytokine release and cholesterol/steroid biosynthesis. Down-regulated DEGs reflect losses in cell division cycle (CDC), cyclins (CCN), cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs), centromere proteins (CENP), kinesin family members (KIFs) and polo-like kinases (PLKs), which were in alignment with biological studies.
Conclusion: Sub-lethal concentrations of WYE appear to evoke pro-inflammatory, steroid biosynthetic and cytostatic effects in TNBC cells.
Cancer Genomics Proteomics 2021 Nov-Dec;18(6):735-755. doi: 10.21873/cgp.20294. PMID: 34697066 PMCID: PMC8569819 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Effects of wild yam extract on menopausal symptoms, lipids and sex hormones in healthy menopausal women
P A Komesaroff 1, C V Black, V Cable, K Sudhir
Abstract
Objectives: Many women seek alternatives to hormonal therapies for the management of menopausal symptoms. Among the treatments currently popular are extracts of wild yam (Dioscorea villosa), which are applied topically in the form of a cream. These preparations are known to contain steroidal saponins, including diosgenin, which has been claimed to influence endogenous steroidogenesis. However, there have been no studies of the safety or efficacy of these preparations in the management of menopausal symptoms.
Methods: We therefore conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study of the effects of a wild yam cream in 23 healthy women suffering from troublesome symptoms of the menopause. After a 4-week baseline period, each woman was given active cream and matching placebo for 3 months in random order. Diaries were completed over the baseline period and for 1 week each month thereafter, and blood and saliva samples were collected at baseline and at 3 and 6 months, for measurement of lipids and hormones.
Results: The average age of the subjects was 53.3 +/- 1.1 (SEM) years and average time since last period 4.3 +/- 0.9 years. At baseline, the average body mass index was 27.3 +/- 0.8, cholesterol level 5.7 +/- 0.2 mmol/l and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) level 74.2 +/- 5.1 IU/l; estradiol levels were undetectable in the majority of cases. After 3 months of treatment, no significant side-effects were reported with either active treatment or placebo, and there were no changes in weight, systolic or diastolic blood pressure, or levels of total serum cholesterol, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, FSH, glucose, estradiol, or serum or salivary progesterone. Symptom scores showed a minor effect of both placebo and active treatment on diurnal flushing number and severity and total non-flushing symptom scores, and on nocturnal sweating after placebo, but no statistical difference between placebo and active creams.
Conclusions: This study suggests that short-term treatment with topical wild yam extract in women suffering from menopausal symptoms is free of side-effects, but appears to have little effect on menopausal symptoms. It emphasizes the importance of careful study of treatments for menopausal symptoms if women are to be adequately informed about the choices available to them.
Climacteric 2001 Jun;4(2):144-50. PMID: 11428178 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Bioassay-guided evaluation of Dioscorea villosa - an acute and subchronic toxicity, antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory approach
Claudio Moreira Lima, Adriana Karla Lima, Marcelia G Dória Melo, Mairim Russo Serafini, Dênisson Lima Oliveira, Enrik Barbosa de Almeida, Rosana Souza Siqueira Barreto, Paulo Cesar de Lima Nogueira, Valéria Regina de Souza Moraes, Edica Ramone Andrade Oliveira, Ricardo Luiz Cavalcanti de Albuquerque Jr, Lucindo J Quintans-Júnior, Adriano Antunes Souza Araújo
Abstract
Background: Dioscorea villosa (DV) has been used in Brazil as an alternative medicine to attenuate menopause symptoms, as well as for the treatment of joint pain and rheumatoid arthritis. In spite of the popular use of DV for the treatment of various disorders, there are limited scientific data regarding safety aspects of this herb. In this regard, we carried out to evaluated both antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory activities in experimental models and assess the toxic effects of the acute (single dose) and subchronic (30 days) oral administration of dry extract of Dioscorea villosa in rodents.
Methods: The LC analyses were performed to assess the presence of the diosgenin in samples of DV. The antinociceptive study of DV was performed using models of acetic acid-induced writhing and formalin-induced pain in mice. The anti-inflammatory study was accomplished by leukocyte migration to the peritoneal cavity. A dry extract of DV was tested at doses of 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg (per os or p.o.). The toxicological properties of the dry extract were evaluated by toxicity assays of acute (5 g/kg, single dose) and subchronic (1 g/kg/day, 30 days) treatment. Haematological, biochemical, and histopathological parameters were studied. The results are expressed as mean ± S.D., and statistical analysis of the data were performed with the Student's t-test or one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Tukey's test. In all cases differences were considered significant if p < 0.05.
Results: HPLC-DAD analysis of the extract from DV revealed the presence of diosgenin as the major compound. Doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg significantly reduced the amount of acetic acid-induced writhing in relation to the vehicle (p < 0.0001). In the first phase, using the formalin-induced neurogenic pain test, only the 400 mg/kg dose of DV showed significant inhibition of neurogenic pain (p < 0.001). In the second phase, 200 and 400 mg/kg of DV showed significant inhibition of inflammatory pain (p < 0.0001). Significant inhibition of leukocyte migration was observed with doses of 100 (p < 0.001), 200 (p < 0.01) and 400 mg/kg (p < 0.01). Haematological, biochemical and histopathological data obtained in both acute and subchronic toxicological assays revealed only unremarkable changes, which are unlikely to indicate DV toxicity with oral administration. PMID: 23889998 PMCID: PMC3734200
treat various inflammatory diseases.
BMC Complement Altern Med 2013 Jul 28;13:195. doi: 10.1186/1472-6882-13-195. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov