Blue Cohosh
Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides)
Blue cohosh, a woodland perennial in the Barberry family, is native to the eastern half of North America and has a long history of medicinal use by Native Americans and by pioneer midwives to induce labor (“Blue Cohosh,” 2006; Rader & Pawar, 2013). The alkaloid methylcytisine, found within the plant, is believed to act as a stimulant on the uterus, increasing the rate of contractions during childbirth (Perri, 2002). The extract the root has been used as an anti-inflammatory agent to prevent or reduce fevers (Lee, 2012). Some evidence has shown that the use of blue cohosh may induce labor and may have adverse effects. Researchers advise that it be used with caution (Dugoua et al., 2008).
Historical Use
According to Medical botany or Descriptions of the more important plants used in medicine, written by Robert Eglesfield Griffith and published in 1847, blue cohosh was used by Native American women to “make use of a tea of the root for some time before their confinement.”
Latest Research
- Non-targeted chemical analysis of consumer botanical products labeled as blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides), goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis), or yohimbe bark (Pausinystalia yohimbe) by NMR and MSby Giovanni O Quiroz-Delfi on November 1, 2023 at 10:00 am
Consumers have unprecedented access to botanical dietary supplements through online retailers, making it difficult to ensure product quality and authenticity. Therefore, methods to survey and compare chemical compositions across botanical products are needed. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and non-targeted mass spectrometry (MS) were used to chemically analyze commercial products labeled as containing one of three botanicals: blue cohosh, goldenseal, and yohimbe bark. Aqueous and…
- Heart Toxicity Related to Herbs and Dietary Supplements: Online Table of Case Reports. Part 4 of 5by Amy C Brown on October 6, 2017 at 10:00 am
CONCLUSION: The online “Toxic Table” forewarns clinicians, consumers and the DS industry by listing DS with case reports related to heart toxicity. It may also contribute to Phase IV post marketing surveillance to diminish adverse events that Government officials use to regulate DS.
- Toxins in botanical dietary supplements: blue cohosh components disrupt cellular respiration and mitochondrial membrane potentialby Sandipan Datta on December 17, 2013 at 11:00 am
Certain botanical dietary supplements have been associated with idiosyncratic organ-specific toxicity. Similar toxicological events, caused by drug-induced mitochondrial dysfunction, have forced the withdrawal or U.S. FDA “black box” warnings of major pharmaceuticals. To assess the potential mitochondrial liability of botanical dietary supplements, extracts from 352 authenticated plant samples used in traditional Chinese, Ayurvedic, and Western herbal medicine were evaluated for the ability to…
- Primary constituents of blue cohosh: quantification in dietary supplements and potential for toxicityby Jeanne I Rader on February 20, 2013 at 11:00 am
Dietary supplements containing dried roots or extracts of the roots and/or rhizomes of blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides) are widely available. This botanical has a long history of use by Native Americans and its use continues to the present day. The primary constituents of blue cohosh are its alkaloids and saponins. The structures of the alkaloids magnoflorine, baptifoline, anagyrine, and N-methylcytisine have been known for many years. The last 10 years have seen a great increase in…
- Analytical methods for determination of magnoflorine and saponins from roots of Caulophyllum thalictroides (L.) Michx. using UPLC, HPLC and HPTLCby Bharathi Avula on August 30, 2011 at 10:00 am
Analytical methods including HPLC, UPLC and HPTLC are presented for the determination of major alkaloid and triterpene saponins from the roots of Caulophyllum thalictroides (L.) Michx. (blue cohosh) and dietary supplements claiming to contain blue cohosh. A separation by LC was achieved using a reversed phase column, PDA with ELS detection, and ammonium acetate/acetonitrile gradient as the mobile phase. Owing to their low UV absorption, the triterpene saponins were detected by evaporative light…
References
Blue Cohosh. (2006). In Drugs and Lactation Database (LactMed). National Library of Medicine (US). http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK501780/
Dugoua, J. J., Perri, D., Seely, D., Mills, E., & Koren, G. (2008). Safety and efficacy of blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides) during pregnancy and lactation. Canadian Journal of Clinical Pharmacology 15(1): e66–e73. Scopus.
Lee, Y., Jung, J.C., Ali, Z., Khan, I.A., Oh, S. (2012) Anti-inflammatory effect of triterpene saponins isolated from Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides). Evid. Based Complement. Alternat. Med. 2012:798192. doi: 10.1155/2012/798192
Perri, S. (2002). Getting to the root of it: A profile of blue cohosh. Midwifery Today 62: 27–28.
Rader, J. I., & Pawar, R. S. (2013). Primary constituents of blue cohosh: Quantification in dietary supplements and potential for toxicity. Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry 405(13): 4409–4417. doi:10.1007/s00216-013-6783-7