Examples of TCM formulas used in Chinese medicine
Raymond Cooper, Chun-Tao Che, Daniel Kam-Wah Mok, Charmaine Wing-Yee Tsang in Chinese and Botanical Medicines, 2017
In this formula, ginseng assumes the role of the “Emperor” ingredient. With its sweet taste and warm nature, ginseng can supplement the lungs with its actions of invigorating qi and promoting body fluid production. The Ophiopogon root, being the “Minister” ingredient, nourishes the lung and promotes body fluid production. With its sweet taste and cold nature, it nourishes yin and clears away excessive heat from the body. The combination of ginseng and the Ophiopogon root produces an additive effect of qi invigoration and yin nourishment. The inclusion of an “Assistant” ingredient, Schisandra fruit, which has a sour taste and warm nature, can exert an astringent action on the lungs and promote body fluid production.
Phytochemistry and pharmacology of component herbs of Shengmai San
Kam-Ming Ko in Shengmai San, 2002
A series of lignans of the dibenzo[a,c]cyclooctadiene type have been isolated from Schisandra species, some of which showed significant biological and biochemical activities in experimental and clinical studies. Lignans are plant phenols whose structure is represented by the union of two cinnanmic acid residues or their biogenetic equivalents. The first compound of the dibenzo[a,c]cyclooctadiene type (Figure 5.4) isolated from seed oil of Schisandra chinensis was schisandrin. Selected examples of reported compounds in Fructus Schisandrae are shown in the Table 5.3.
Herbs with Antidepressant Effects
Scott Mendelson in Herbal Treatment of Major Depression, 2019
A multitude of polyphenolic phytochemicals have been isolated from Schisandra chinensis. Lignans – some of which are so-called “phytoestrogens” – are the major and characteristic constituents of the genus Schisandraceae. Schizandrins are antioxidant lignans somewhat unique to these plants. Most important among them are the dibenzo[a,c]cyclooctadiene lignans. The plant also contains glycosides, for example, (+)-Isoscoparin 66 Quercetin-3-O--l-rhamnopyranosyl (1→6)--d-glucopyranoside; flavonoids, including hyperoside, isoquercitrin, rutin, and quercetin; and organic acids.2
Bioactivation of herbal constituents: mechanisms and toxicological relevance
Published in Drug Metabolism Reviews, 2019
Schisandra fruit (Schisandra chinensis) has been used in traditional Chinese medicines for centuries as a sedative, antitussive and general tonic agent. The major pharmacological active lignans in Schisandra fruit extract include schizandrin, γ-schizandrin, gomisins A, B, C, G, and N. Of note, all lignans showed inhibitory effects on CYP3A4, except for schizandrin (Iwata et al. 2004). The structure-activity relationship analysis suggested that for the dibenzocyclooctadiene-based lignans, the MDP group is a prerequisite for CYP3A4 inhibition. Time- and NADPH-dependent CYP3A4 inhibition by gomisins were demonstrated (Iwata et al. 2004; Zhai et al. 2017). For example, gomisin C inactivated CYP3A4-mediated erythromycin N-demethylation with KI = 0.399 µM and kinact = 0.092 min−1. Spectral scanning of the reaction between CYP3A4 and gomisin C revealed the formation of an absorption spectrum at 455 nm, suggesting formation of the MDP carbene complexes with ferrous heme iron (Iwata et al. 2004).
Interaction of deoxyschizandrin and schizandrin B with liver uptake transporters OATP1B1 and OATP1B3
Published in Xenobiotica, 2019
Yanli Lu, Qingqing Hu, Lin Chen, Hong Zhang, Shibo Huang, Yuqing Xiong, Chunhua Xia
Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill has been widely used as traditional Chinese medicine for thousands of years, owing to its diverse pharmacological effects. Clinically, Schisandra fruit extract has been used as an adjuvant drug in China for decades. It would be meaningful to discuss the pharmacokinetic interaction of Schisandra monomers and other clinical drugs during their hepatic metabolism and transport. Our data showed that deoxyschizandrin and schizandrin B exhibited a high affinity to OATP1B1 and had distinct effects on OATPs-mediated uptake of different kinds of compounds. Deoxyschizandrin and schizandrin B could significantly stimulate the uptake of statins mediated by OATP1B1. This may provide important insights into the hepatic transport of statins when they are co-administered with SMI that is often used in Chinese clinical practice. Conversely, deoxyschizandrin competitively inhibited the uptake of TCNa, an OATP1B1 substrate, suggesting that deoxyschizandrin may be a specific substrate of OATP1B1. From these two results, we suppose that multiple active sites or coenzyme binding sites may exist in OATP1B1. The binding of deoxyschizandrin and schizandrin B to OATP1B1 may lead to conformational changes in OATP1B1 and subsequently cause pharmacokinetic changes in clinical drugs.
Evaluation of the inhibition of human carboxylesterases (CESs) by the active ingredients from Schisandra chinensis
Published in Xenobiotica, 2019
Qiang Fu, Kai Yang, Rui-Xia Hu, Zuo Du, Cui-Min Hu, Xibo Zhang
Schisandra chinensis, also called wuweizi in Chinese, is the fruit of Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill., and has been officially utilized as a Chinese medicine for more than two thousand years. Schisandra chinensis has been utilized as a sedative and tonic to treat various diseases such as chronic cough and dyspnea, nocturnal emission, spermatorrhea, enuresis, and frequent urination. Schisandra chinensis can also be used as flavoring agent of foods (Alexander & Wikman, 2008; Chen et al., 2013). It can be used for the treatment of viral and chemical liver injuries with an obvious therapeutic effect (Ali et al., 2018). Schisandra chinensis can also be used to treat cancer and some inflammation diseases (Zhao et al., 2013). Through isolation from Schisandra chinensis, many bioactive ingredients (e.g., lignans, nortriterpenes, sesquiterpenes, phenolic acids, etc.) have been obtained. Among these ingredients, lignans have been widely accepted to be one of the most important pharmacological ingredients. For example, Schisandrol B has been demonstrated to play an important role in the protection of liver toxicity (Jiang et al., 2016; Zeng et al., 2017). Another lignan Schisandrin A has been reported to exert anti-tumor activity toward multiple types of cancers, such as ovarian cancer (Lee et al., 2018). Schisandrin B has been also demonstrated to show therapeutic function towards cancers, such as glioma (Jiang et al., 2017).
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