Prunella
vulgaris.夏枯草Xià kū cǎoSelfheal
Spike
Family: Labiatae PART USED: Spike
of flowers- harvested in Summer when the plant is half withered. FLAVOR: Bitter, acrid, pungent CHANNEL:
Liver, Gall Bladder FUNCTIONS GROUP: Clearing Internal
Heat- Reducing Fire
1. Clear Liver Heat.[4]Clear
Liver Fire, disperse Qi congestion. Antipyretic. Clears the Liver and relieves
congestion.[1] Brightens eyes.[4]
2. Clears Heat and disspates nodules.[4]
3. Diuretic.[3] Promotes diuresis
and reduces edema.[1] INDICATIONS- Mainly for clearing Heat
1. Ascending Liver fire:[4]red painful or swollen eyes, headache and dizziness.[4]
Liver Heat:[3] Hypertension.[1,3]
Conjunctivitis.[1] Headache, vertigo,
red eyes, swelling of eyes, enlargement of thyroid gland. Also used for eye pain
that increases in the evening due to Liver feiciency, especially when the eyes
are neither red nor swollen.[4]
2. Lymphadenopathy, goiter.[1,3] Lymphatic
tuberculosis. Mastitis. Neck lumps or nodules as in scofula,
lipoma, swllen glands or goiter due to Phlegm Fire.[4]
Also used for similar nodules in the inguinal canal and other parts of the body.[4]
3. Neutralize toxins.[3] Abscesses
and swellings.[1]
4. Edema, difficult urination.[1]
5. Recently been used in treating hypertension, especially when accompanied
by Liver Fire or ascendant Yang patterns.[4] CONTRAINDICATIONS: Cannot be used alone for prolonged periods as it over
stimulates the Stomach. It must be combined with Dang
shen and Bai zhu to prevent
Stomach Wind from being produced.[3]
Use with caution in cases of Spleen or Stomach deficiency.[4] COMBINATIONS
PREPARATIONSDecoction-
Spikes 6-15 g.[1] Dry flower
15-30 g.[3] 9-15 g, up to 30 g when
used alone.[4] Good quality is dark,
reddish purple with large spikes.
It is used as a tea in summer-time to cool Heat. It is very effective for treating
children with skin problems due to summer Heat.[1]
HABITAT: Found growing wild along roadsides
and hilly slopes. DESCRIPTION: Prunella is a perennial herb 40 cm in height. Stem; erect,
quadrangular, multibranching, covered by fine white hairs. Leaves; about 2-3 cm
long and 1 cm broad, with entire margins. opposite, ovate or ovate-lanceolate,
apexes acute, bases cuneate, margins slightly undulate-dentate or almost intact,
both surfaces pubescent, lower stem leaves petioled, upper leaves non-petioled.
Flowers; in summer, purplish blue, in a dense terminal spike, with two kidney
shaped bracts under each whorl. Nut; obovate, brown References
[1] Barefoot Doctor's Manual- 1977 Prepared by the Revolutionary Health Committee
of Hunan Province. Original Chinese manual- Victor W. Sidel. Originally published
by Dr Joseph Quin and the Fogarty International centre, Bethdesda (1974). Madrona
Publishers Seattle Washington ISBN 0-914842-52-8
[2] A Complete English Dictionary of Medicinal Terms in Chinese Acupuncture
and Herbalism 1981- Henry Lu Chinese Foundations of Natural Health- The Academy
of Oriental Heritage, Vancouver, Canada.
[3] Translation notes from Gary Seiford and Hocu Huhn- NSW College of Natural
Therapies. Sydney Australia (1982).
[4] Chinese Herbal Medicine Materia Medica- Dan Bensky and Andrew Gamble- Eastland
Press 1986 Seattle Washington ISBN 0-939616-15-7 Images
1. littlemountainhomeopathy.com
2. [1] 3. mymall.netbuilder.com.my
4. amazon.com
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.
Oleanic acid, ursolic acid, rutin, hyperoside,
caffeic acid, vitamin B1, vitamin C, vitamin K, tannin.[1]
Pentacyclic triterpenes based on ursolic, betulinic and oleanolic acids.[2]
Free ursolic ancid and oleanolic acid, a glycose of oleanolic acid as well as
rutin anbd hyperoside.[4]
Volatile oil: Camphor, fenchone and fenchole.[3] References
[1] Kojima, H. et al. (1987) Phytochem. 26 (4), 1107
[2] Chinese Herbal Medicine Materia Medica- Dan Bensky and Andrew Gamble- Eastland
Press 1986 Seattle Washington ISBN 0-939616-15-7
[3] E. Gildemeister and F. Hoffman, Die Astherischen Oele, Vol. 7, Akademie
Verlag, Berlin, 1961
[4] R. Hegnauer, Chemotaxonomie der Pflanzen, Vol. 4 Birkauser, verlag. Basel,
1966
Research.
Antibacterial (especially effective against aeruginasum and stephylococcii, antihypertensive
agent, used against tumours.[1] References
[1] Translation notes from Gary Seiford and Hocu Huhn- NSW College of Natural
Therapies. Sydney Australia (1982).
Immune modulatory effects of Prunella vulgaris L.
Fang X, Chang RC, Yuen WH, Zee SY. Abstract
Prunella vulgaris L. (Labiatae) is a perennial plant known as 'self-heal' in Western
herbal medicine. It has a wide array of biological effects exhibiting numerous
therapeutic potentials. Its anti-microbial effects including anti-viral and anti-bacterial
effects are, presently, receiving increasing attention. While its anti-viral effects
are attributed mainly to the inhibition of virus replication, the biological mechanisms
of its anti-bacterial effects or actions remain unknown. In view of the fact that
polysaccharides isolated from medicinal herbs often function as biological response
modifier of body immunity, we hypothesized that the anti-microbial effect of polysaccharides
isolated from P. vulgaris is probably also mediated via immune modulation. We
have isolated four polysaccharides containing fractions from P. vulgaris, one
of the fractions, PV2, could markedly stimulate the production of superoxide and
nitrite representing nitric oxide from murine macrophage RAW264.7 and brain macrophage
BV2 cells. The amount of nitrite and superoxide produced after PV2 stimulation
was as high as that seen in stimulation using bacterial endotoxin lipopolysaccharide
(LPS), and this stimulatory response is dose-dependent. In addition to monocyte/macrophage,
PV2 also stimulated the proliferation of splenocytes. In this study, we have shown
that the polysaccharides isolated from P. vulgaris have marked immune stimulatory
effects, which may bring about the anti-microbial effects of P. vulgaris.
PMID: 15702244 Int J Mol Med. 2005 Mar;15(3):491-6. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Biological activities of Prunella vulgaris extract.
Psotová J, Kolár M, Sousek J, Svagera Z, Vicar J, Ulrichová
J. Abstract
The organic fraction (OF; 25.7% w/w of rosmarinic acid) of Prunella vulgaris (total
extract) was found to exhibit the following: scavenging activity on diphenylpicrylhydrazyl
radical (DPPH), inhibition of in vitro human LDL Cu(II)-mediated oxidation, protection
of rat mitochondria and rat hepatocytes exposed to either tert-butyl hydroperoxide,
or to Cu(II) and Fe(III) ions. OF also showed a potential to inhibit rat erythrocyte
haemolysis and it reduced the production of LTB(4) in bovine PMNL generated by
the 5-lipoxygenase pathway. Other observations included antiproliferative effects
against HaCaT cells and mouse epidermal fibroblasts and a moderate OF antimicrobial
activity on gram-positive bacteria. Rosmarinic, caffeic and 3-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)lactic
acids exhibited less potent activity than the plant extract in all bioassays.
The antioxidative, antimicrobial, together with antiviral effects offer good prospects
for the medicinal applications of P. vulgaris.
PMID: 14595592 DOI: 10.1002/ptr.1324 Phytother Res. 2003 Nov;17(9):1082-7. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Immune modulatory effects of Prunella vulgaris L. on monocytes/macrophages.
Fang X, Yu MM, Yuen WH, Zee SY, Chang RC. Abstract
Prunella vulgaris L. (Labiatae), a popular Western and Chinese herbal medicine,
has long been associated with anti-viral and anti-bacterial effects. While its
anti-viral effects are attributed mainly to the inhibition of virus replication,
the biological mechanisms of its anti-bacterial effects remain unknown. As a biological
response modifier (BRM), the polysaccharides isolated from P. vulgaris have been
shown to up-regulate the immune responses of monocytes/macrophages. However, the
immune stimulatory effects seem to contradict its well-known anti-inflammatory
properties. We hypothesized that the anti-microbial effects exhibited by the polysaccharides
isolated from P. vulgaris encompass both anti-inflammatory and immune stimulatory
effects. One of the polysaccharide fractions PV2IV markedly stimulated the production
of superoxide and nitrite representing nitric oxide from murine macrophage RAW264.7
and brain macrophage BV2 cells. The amount of nitrite and superoxide produced
after PV2IV stimulation was as high as that stimulated by bacterial endotoxin
lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, PV2IV also increased
cellular protein levels of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and mRNA for
tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha). Similar to the effects of a high dose
of LPS, the fraction PV2 could trigger activation-induced cell death (AICD) by
stimulating caspase-3 activity and reduction of MTT uptake in monocytes/macrophages.
These results may help our understanding of the molecular mechanism of P. vulgaris,
which exhibited both immune stimulatory and anti-inflammatory effects against
microbial invasion.
PMID: 16273294 Int J Mol Med. 2005 Dec;16(6):1109-16. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Isolation and characterization of an anti-HSV polysaccharide from Prunella
vulgaris.
Xu HX, Lee SH, Lee SF, White RL, Blay J. Abstract
A water soluble substance was isolated from a Chinese herb, Prunella vulgaris,
by hot water extraction, ethanol precipitation and gel permeation column chromatography.
Chemical tests showed that the substance was an anionic polysaccharide. Using
a plaque reduction assay, the polysaccharide at 100 microg/ml was active against
the herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2), but was inactive against
cytomegalovirus, the human influenza virus types A and B, the poliovirus type
1 or the vesicular stomatitis virus. The 50% plaque reduction dose of the polysaccharide
for HSV-1 and HSV-2 was 10 microg/ml. Clinical isolates and known acyclovir-resistant
(TK-deficient or polymerase-defective) strains of HSV-1 and HSV-2 were similarly
inhibited by the polysaccharide. Pre-incubation of HSV-1 with the polysaccharide
at 4, 25 or 37 degrees C completely abrogated the infectivity of HSV-1, but pre-treatment
of Vero cells with the polysaccharide did not protect cells from infection by
the virus. The addition of the polysaccharide at 0, 2, 5.5 and 8 h post-infection
of Vero cells with HSV-1 at a multiplicity of infection (MOI) of five reduced
the 20 h-yield of intracellular infectious virus by 100, 99, 99 and 94%, respectively.
In contrast, a similar addition of heparin showed 85, 63, 53 and 3% reduction
of intracellular virus yield, respectively. These results suggest that the polysaccharide
may inhibit HSV by competing for cell receptors as well as by some unknown mechanisms
after the virus has penetrated the cells. The Prunella polysaccharide was not
cytotoxic to mammalian cells up to the highest concentration tested, 0.5 mg/ml
and did not show any anti-coagulant activity. In conclusion, the polysaccharide
isolated from P. vulgaris has specific activity against HSV and its mode of action
appears to be different from other anionic carbohydrates, such as heparin.
PMID: 10588332 Antiviral Res. 1999 Nov;44(1):43-54. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Extract of Prunella vulgaris spikes inhibits HIV replication at reverse
transcription in vitro and can be absorbed from intestine in vivo.
Kageyama S, Kurokawa M, Shiraki K. Abstract
It has been reported that extracts of the spike of Prunella vulgaris (PS) exhibit
anti-HIV activity at the adsorption and reverse transcription stages. In this
study, the actual activity of PS in cells, kinetic analysis of the inhibitory
activity of PS against HIV reverse transcriptase and the feasibility of oral administration
were examined. First, to clarify whether this extract shows anti-HIV activity
in cells in vitro, the number of copies of proviral DNA in HIV-exposed cells was
calculated. The number of copies was significantly decreased in cells cultured
in the presence of PS extract, but not in the presence of dextran sulphate. The
activity of PS extract in the cells was also assessed by the drug addition test,
during and after HIV adsorption. PS extract and dextran sulphate suppressed HIV
production to similar levels when added after HIV adsorption. However, only PS
extract suppressed HIV production at the same concentration when the drugs were
added during HIV adsorption. Presumably, the penetration of the PS extract into
the cells was required for this activity. Secondly, fractionated PS inhibited
HIV reverse transcription in a non-competitive manner. This fractionated PS kept
anti-HIV activity, but inhibited HIV replication and adsorption to a lesser extent
compared to dextran sulphate. Lastly, an active component(s) was detected in plasma
in vivo, after injection into the intestine, which demonstrates the feasibility
of oral administration dosing.
PMID: 10819439 DOI: 10.1177/095632020001100207 Antivir Chem Chemother. 2000 Mar;11(2):157-64.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov