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Ezekiel 47:12 "And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine."
Nicknames: In Northwest and Southwest areas of China it is called: "Jinxian diao wugui" or "bai yao zi".[20]
Ethnobotany: What is ethnobotany? According to Stetson University, Ethnobotany is: "The study of the practical uses of plants within a particular region or culture, focusing on traditional knowledge and customs regarding medicinal, religious, and other applications."(via: Stetson.EDU) Likewise, ethnobotanicals are botanical specimens that ethnobotanist study. Ethnobotanist bridge the worlds between primitive indigenous cultures, and the modern fields related to medical research and pharmaceuticals. Now that you know what this segment represents, let's discuss some of the ethnobotany of various Stephania species. This page is dedicated mostly to S. cepharantha, but I discuss closely related strains as well, as their uses and phytochemicals are generally the same or strikingly similar. "Stephania venosa (Blume) Spreng or “Sa-Bu-Leud” is a Thai medicinal plant used for treatment of cancer and diabetes, and as a blood-tonic and aphrodisiac"[3] "Stephania tetrandra and related species are extensively referenced in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia for their use in the Chinese medicinal system as an analgesic and diuretic agent and also in the treatment of hypertension and various other ailments, including asthma, tuberculosis, dysentery, hyperglycemia, malaria, cancer and fever."[11]
Classification:
Synonyms: The following names all belong to the same plant, just under different synonyms: Stephania cepharantha;[x] Stephania disciflora;[x] Stephania tetrandra;[x] "This plant possesses seven synonyms: Cissampelos glabra Roxb., Clypea corymbosa Blume., Clypea glabra (Roxb.) Wight and Arn."[17]
Related Species That Have Been Studied By Phytochemist: Stephania dielsiana, Stephania venosa, Stephania cambodica, Stephania epigaea, Stephania cephalantha..
Phytochemicals: What is phytochemistry? "Phytochemistry is the study of the chemistry of substances found in plants."(Via: upm.EDU) and What are phytochemicals? Phytochemicals are medicinal chemicals produced by plants.[4][5][6][7] "Phytochemicals have been classified into three main groups according to their structural elements: terpenoids, alkaloids, and polyphenolic compounds."[8] "Six morphinane alkaloids known as: cephasamine, cephakicine, tannagine, 14-episinomenine, FK-3000, and sinoacutine, and five hasubanane alkaloids known as: cephatonine, cepharamine, aknadinine, aknadicine, and aknadilactam, were isolated from the tuber of Stephania cepharantha Hayata (Menispermaceae) cultivated in Japan. Three of these were new alkaloids."[1] The phytochemical content of closely related species generally share the same profile, however there are variations in the levels in which these components exist within the live plant. Stephania rotunda has been found to produce a phytochemical called tetrahydropalmatine, which is psychoactive, and legal.[2] You can buy it online in its pure form. Fractionation of Stephania venosa strain's extract resulted in the identification of three alkaloids, namely, dicentrine, crebanine, and tetrahydropalmatine.[3] It also produces 3, 4-Dehydrocycleanine, a New Bisbenzylisoquinoline Alkaloid.[21] "Two new isoquinoline alkaloids, stecepharine and tetradehydroreticuline have been isolated along with the known compounds, magnoflorine, menisperine, steponine, cyclanoline, oblongine, cis-N-methylcapaurine and 2'-N-methylisotetrandrine.cis-N-Methylcapaurine (=9-O-methylstecepharine) was isolated from Stephania c."[22].
Cepharanthine: According to the National Library Of Medicine: "Cepharanthine, a biscoclaurine alkaloid extracted from Stephania cepharantha Hayata, has been widely used for the treatment of various acute and chronic diseases, including leukopenia, and snake bites."[9] Another academic source tells us that: "Cepharanthine has a variety of medicinal properties, including signaling pathway inhibitory activities, immunomodulatory activities, and antiviral activities."[10] It is a member of the bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloid family.[10] Cepharanthine is mainly obtained by isolation or extraction from the roots of Stephania Cepharantha Hayata, with a content percentage of roughly 19.5-33.5% in the root mass!.[10] That's a lot of alkaloid!
Tetrandrine: "Tetrandrine is a bisbenzyl isoquinoline alkaloid extracted from Stephania tetrandra(and found in related species). Tetrandrine is a known calcium channel blocker with wide bioactivity. Tetrandrine has been effectively used against Ebola virus infection in mice. Tetrandrine, well-known to act as a calcium channel blocker, has been tested in clinical trials and found effective against silicosis, hypertension, inflammation and lung cancer without any toxicity. Recently, the efficacy of tetrandrine was tested against Mycobaterium tuberculosis, Candida albicans, Plasmodium falciparum and Ebola virus. Tetrandrine's pharmacological property has been proved to be through its action on different signalling pathways like reactive oxygen species, enhanced autophagic flux, reversal of multi drug resistance, caspase pathway, cell cycle arrest and by modification of calcium channels"[11] Let's start from the top, and go over what this means, put in simpler terms. Question: What is a calcium channel blocker? Answer: "A type of drug that keeps calcium from entering the muscle cells of the heart and blood vessels. This causes the blood vessels to relax and widen, which allows the blood to flow more easily and lowers blood pressure."[13]
Tetrahydropalmatine: This stuff is mildly psychoactive supposedly, and this will be one of the next ethnobotanicals that I try because of this! I'll update the page then with my experience report then! "Levo-tetrahydropalmatine (l-THP) is an alkaloid substance derived from corydalis and stephania that has been used in traditional Asian medicine for its analgesic, sedative and hypnotic properties. Previous pharmacological studies of l-THP indicated that it not only binds to D1 and D2 receptors but also has a low affinity for D3 receptors and may function as an antagonist. The unique pharmacological profile of l-THP suggests that it may have potential therapeutic effects on drug addiction;"[14] I don't know if you've seen my other blog: quiz-one-mind-body-systems-fasting.html , but it goes over some important facts that relate to this segment on THP(Tetrahydropalmatine). "Numerous studies have shown that chronic exposure of a receptor to an antagonist typically leads to upregulation, or an increased number of receptors."[15] This means that the phytochemical THP(Tetrahydropalmatine) actually leads to an increase in D1, D2, and D3 receptors because of its antagonist behavior! Here are some facts about the various types of dopamine receptors in the body and brain: D1: memory, attention, impulse control, regulation of renal function, locomotion, D2: locomotion, attention, sleep, memory, learning, D3: cognition, impulse control, attention, sleep, D4: cognition, memory, fear, impulse control, attention, sleep, D5: decision making, cognition, attention, renin secretion.[16]
Cissampareine: Cissampareine is another psychoactive phytochemical found in the Cissampelos glabra Roxb, which is a synonym for Stephania cepharnatha.[17][18] "Cissampareine and four other bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloids isolated from menispermaceous plants were found to show significant and reproducible inhibitory activity against human carcinoma of the nasopharynx carried in cell culture".[19] "Cepharanthine demonstrated anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, immunomodulating, antiparasitic, and antiviral (Bailly, 2019) properties. Additionally, it has found applications in treating coronavirus disease 2019"(Rogosnitzky et al., 2020).[20]
3, 4-dehydrocycleanine:
Magnoflorine: Magnoflorine is an aporphine alkaloid.[23] Magnoflorine also has the synonyms of: Thalictrin; Escholin; Escholine; Thalictrine.[23] Magnoflorine has also been identified to be an inhibitor of NF-κB activation, and to be an agonist at the β2 -adrenergic receptor.[24] Beta-2 receptors are mostly found in lung and blood vessel cells, and heart cells also.[26] According to Harvard University: "The job of beta receptors is to latch onto chemical messengers released by the nervous system. In response to these messengers, the heart beats faster, blood vessels constrict, the airways relax, and the kidneys increase production of a protein that boosts blood pressure. Beta blockers subvert these processes by settling onto beta receptors and preventing the chemical messengers from binding to their receptors. That slows the heart, improves the conduction of electrical signals in the heart, relaxes blood vessels, and lowers blood pressure."[26] Remember, Agonist bind to and activate receptors, and eventually this will cause downregulation(thus inducing tolerance).[25] Because Magnoflorine is an agonist and not an antagonist, it will bind to and activate the receptor, thus the result should be a stimulating effect. Keep in mind though that we're talking about the pharmacology of one specific phytochemical in a plant that produces insane numbers of compounds, so one can not expect the entire plant to behave the same as one component. How much Magnoflorine exist in the dried plant material is also something that has to be taken into consideration when attempting to use this knowledge for medical reasons. Phytochemicals have their own pharmacology when they're isolated and tested, but they synergize with all of the other miraculous components when the whole herbs are used in tea, tincture, and other natural herbalist forms.
Pharmacological / Medicinal Properties:
Mixes well with:
O.G. Observations:
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Academic citations:
[1] Kashiwaba, Noriaki, et al. "New morphinane and hasubanane alkaloids from Stephania cepharantha." Journal of natural products 59.5 (1996): 476-480.
[2] Chea, Aun, et al. "Antimalarial activity of alkaloids isolated from Stephania rotunda." Journal of Ethnopharmacology 112.1 (2007): 132-137.
[3] Kongkiatpaiboon, S., Duangdee, N., Prateeptongkum, S., & Chaijaroenkul, W. (2016). Acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity of alkaloids isolated from Stephania venosa. Natural Product Communications, 11(12), 1934578X1601101208.
[4] Johnson, Ian T. "Phytochemicals and cancer." Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 66.2 (2007): 207-215.
[8] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/phytochemical
[9] Cepharanthine Exerts Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Effects in Lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-Induced Macrophages and DSS-Induced Colitis Mice | PMCID: PMC10458559 PMID: 37630322 | https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10458559/
[10] Liu, Ke, et al. "Pharmacological activity of cepharanthine." Molecules 28.13 (2023): 5019.
[11] N. Bhagya, K.R. Chandrashekar, Tetrandrine – A molecule of wide bioactivity, Phytochemistry, Volume 125, 2016, Pages 5-13, ISSN 0031-9422, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.2016.02.005. (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031942216300218)
[12] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/pharmacology-toxicology-and-pharmaceutical-science/tetrahydropalmatine
[13] National Cancer Institute: https://www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-terms/def/calcium-channel-blocker
[14] Levo-tetrahydropalmatine, a natural, mixed dopamine receptor antagonist, inhibits methamphetamine self-administration and methamphetamine-induced reinstatement | Xiaokang Gong et al. Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 2016 May. | doi: 10.1016/j.pbb.2016.01.010. Epub 2016 Jan 21.
[15] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4780670/ Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors: upregulation, age-related effects, and associations with drug use. PMCID: PMC4780670 NIHMSID: NIHMS762805 PMID: 26351737
[16] Biochemistry, Dopamine Receptors | Anmol Bhatia; Jennifer R. Lenchner; Abdolreza Saadabadi. | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538242/
[17] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/pharmacology-toxicology-and-pharmaceutical-science/stephania
[18] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/biochemistry-genetics-and-molecular-biology/stephania-tetrandra
[19] Kupchan, S. Morris, A. C. Patel, and Eiichi Fujita. "Tumor inhibitors VI. Cissampareine, new cytotoxic alkaloid from Cissampelos pareira. Cytotoxicity of bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloids." Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences 54.4 (1965): 580-583.
[20] Yang Yu, Jie-Xin Zhang, Jing-Yi Yue, Tao Xu, Ju-Tao Wang, Bai-Xiang Cai, Lignan glycosides from the stems of Stephania cepharantha, Phytochemistry Letters, Volume 53, 2023, Pages 31-36, ISSN 1874-3900, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phytol.2022.11.009. (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1874390022002099)
[21] Kashiwaba, Noriaki, et al. "Alkaloidal constituents of the tubers of Stephania cepharantha cultivated in Japan: Structure of 3, 4-dehydrocycleanine, a new bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloid." Chemical and pharmaceutical bulletin 45.3 (1997): 470-475.
[22] Tanahashi, T., Su, Y., Nagakura, N., & Nayeshiro, H. (2000). Quaternary isoquinoline alkaloids from Stephania cepharantha. Chemical and pharmaceutical bulletin, 48(3), 370-373.
[23] https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Magnoflorine
[24] Sun, Dan; Han, Yanqi; Wang, Weiya; Wang, Zengyong; Ma, Xiaoyao; Hou, Yuanyuan; Bai, Gang (2016). "Screening and identification of Caulis Sinomenii bioactive ingredients with dual-target NF-κB inhibition and β2-AR agonizing activities". Biomed Chromatogr. 30 (11): 1843–1853. doi:10.1002/bmc.3761. PMID 27187693.
[25] Tulane University: https://tmedweb.tulane.edu/pharmwiki/doku.php/basic_principles_of_pharm
[26] Harvard University: https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/beta-blockers-cardiac-jacks-of-all-trades
[5] Balick, Michael J., and Paul Alan Cox. Plants, people, and culture: the science of ethnobotany. Garland Science, 2020.
[6] Tyler, Varro E, et al. Pharmacognosy 1988 (9th Edition)
[7] Swerdlow, Joel L. Nature's Medicine : Plants That Heal. Washington, D.C., National Geographic Society, 2000.
Encyclopedia Resources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phytochemical
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phytochemistry
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnobotany
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_isolate
Other resources:
M.A.P.S. Ethnobotanical Studies By Scholars
National Library Of Medicine https://www.nlm.nih.gov/
PubChem - pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov