Tinkturenpresse

Achyranthes bidentata Blume - Amaranthaceae - ox knee, 牛膝 niu xi (chin.)

Perennial herb, 70-120cm tall, native to Southeast Asia.

„ It is the source of Huái niú xī, a Chinese herbal medicine with anti-inflammatory activities.“
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achyranthes_bidentata

Achyranthes root (JP XII, Hager), ox-knee root
The ancient Chines herbal „Shennung-bencau-ging“ (1st-3rd century) already described the crude drug „Go-shitsu“, which is employed as diuretic or tonic. It is prepared from the roots of plants of the genera Cyathula and Achyranthes and marketed under a variety of commercial names.
[Hikino H, Takemoto T; Arthropod moulting hormones from plants, Achyranthes and Cyathula, Naturwissenschaften 59(1972),91-98]
Definition. JPXII describes „Achyranthes Root“ as the dried root of Achyranthes fauriei or Achyranthes bidentata.
Description. The roots is externally greyish-yellow to yellow-brown, with numerous longitudinal wrinkles and slight odor. The surface of fractured root is flat, with greyish-white to light brown on the outer parts and yellow-white center. The taste is slightly sweet, mucilaginous.
Constituents. Polar extracts (eg. methanol) of Achyranthes bidentata roots produced the phytoecdysones beta-ecdysone and inokosterone.
[Takemoto T, et al.; Yakugaku Zasshi 88(1968), 1293]
Achyranthes fauriei roots contained beta-ecdysone, epiecdysterone, inokosterone and rubrosterone. [Hikino H, Takemoto T; see cit. above]
Effects. The drug acts diuretic, antiphlogistic, analgesic, hypotensive. The drug was also used to achieve cervix dilatation.
[Chang HM, But PPH (Eds.); Pharmacology and Applications of Chinese Materia \ Medica, Vol.I, Chinese Medicinal Material Research Centre, The University of Hong Kong, (1987), 223-228]
Stated to have a dramatic therapeutic effect on patients with neuralgia, as described for the crude drug „Go-shitsu“ two thousand years ago.
[cited as „unpublished result“ in Hikino H, Takemoto T; see cit. above]

„Immunocytochemistry and western blot analysis showed that ABPPk [a RP-HPLC fraction of Achyranthes bidentata polypeptides (ABPP) from aqeous extract] promoted neurite growth in cultured dorsal root ganglion explant and dorsal root ganglion neurons, which might be associated with activation of Erk1/2. A combination of behavioral tests, electrophysiological assessment, and histomorphometric analysis indicated that ABPPk enhanced nerve regeneration and function restoration in a mouse model of crushed sciatic nerve. All the results suggest that ABPPk, as the key component of ABPP, can be used for peripheral nerve repair to yield better outcomes than ABPP.“
[The Achyranthes bidentata polypeptide k fraction enhances neuronal growth in vitro and promotes peripheral nerve regeneration after crush injury in vivo., Chen,g, Q., Jiang, C., Wang, C., Yu, S., Zhang, Q., Gu, X., Ding, F. Neural Regeneration Research, Vol.9(24), 2014, 2142]