Swertia japonica (Schult.) Makino - syn.Gentiana japonica Schult. - Gentianaceae \\
senburi (jap.), **Swertia**

Small annual herb, up to 20cm hogh, native to Japan and Korea; stem square, with branches; leaves opposite, linear or narrow lanceolate, 1-4cm long, 1-5mm width, entire, sessile; flowers with 5 stamens on the tube of the white corolla, which is splitted deeply into 5 narrow lobes. 

"Swertia herb (florescent whole plantof Swertia japonica, Gentianaceae) has long been utilized as a folk medicine in Japan. It is often blended in general gastroenteric drugs as a bitter stomachic. Swertiamarin, a bitter secoiridoid glycoside, is the representative constituent of this crude drug and Swertia herb is normally evaluated by the swertiamarin content." \\
[Analysis of swertiamarin in Swertia herb and preparations containing this crude drug by capillary electrophoresis., Takei, H., Nakauchi, K., Yoshizaki, F., Analytical sciences: the international journal of the Japan Society for Analytical Chemistry, Vol.17(7), 2001, 885-888]

{{:swertiamarin.jpg|}} [[http://www.sigmaaldrich.com/catalog/product/sigma/smb00080?lang=de&region=DE|swertiamarin]]

S.japonica herb has been used as a stomachic or stimulant of appetite. Compounds found in the whole plant were the secoiridoid glycosides swertiajaposide A and swertiajaposide B, the unsaturated alcohol glycoside 3-butenyl 6'-O-α-L-arabinopyranosyl-β-D-glucopyranoside, the lignan glycoside 7R,7'R,8S,8'S-(+)-neo-olivil-4-O-β-D-glucopyranoside, as well as 1-O-β-D-glucopyranosylamplexine, boonein, 5-hydro-xymethylisochroman-1-one, 3-hydroxybenzyl β-D-glu-copyranoside, 8- O-primeverosylbellidifolin and 2-O-[α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→2)-β-D-xylopyranosyl]-1,8-dihydroxy-6-methoxyxanthone. \\  
[Studies on the constituents of Swertia japonica Makino II. On the structures of new glycosides., Kikuchi, M., Kikuchi, M., Chemical and pharmaceutical bulletin, Vol.53(1), 2005, 48-51] \\
[[http://cpb.pharm.or.jp/cpb/200501/c01_0048.pdf]]

"Swertiamarin has similar pharmacological actions as 5-HT2 antagonist and 5-HT2C selective agonist. This warrants that swertiamarin might modulate 5-HT2 receptors rather than affecting the uptake of serotonin. In the light of present investigation, the mechanism of these drugs can correlate the role of central and peripheral 5-HT2 receptors in diabetes." \\
[Role of 5-HT2 receptors in diabetes: swertiamarin seco-irioid glycoside might be a possible 5-HT2 receptor modulator., Sonawane, R.D., Deore, V.B., Patil, S.D., Patil, C.R., Surana, S.J., Goyal, R.K., Physiology & behavior, 2015]

{{http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ja/thumb/8/88/%E3%82%BB%E3%83%B3%E3%83%96%E3%83%AA_Swertia_japonica.JPG/640px-%E3%82%BB%E3%83%B3%E3%83%96%E3%83%AA_Swertia_japonica.JPG}} \\
picture source wikimedia commons, センブリ（千振, Swertia japonica)