Soapwort
Soapwort (Saponaria officinalis)
(Note: Rock Soapwort redirects to this page. The genus is the same, but some species-specific properties may differ)
Saponaria officinalis also known as soapwort or fuller’s herb is a perennial plant in the family Caryophyllaceae (Thakur et al., 2014). It is native to habitats in Europe and Central Asia and is commonly found growing along roadsides, in hedges and close to water(Jia, Koike, & Nikaido, 1998; Koike, Jia, & Nikaido, 1999). It is cultivated as a horticultural plant in several countries (Smulek et al., 2017). In ancient times the underground stem of the plant were used as a detergent (Smulek et al., 2017). The extracts of Saponaria officinalis are used to treat rheumatic disorders, bronchitis and skin ailments (Jia et al., 1998; Koike et al., 1999).
Historical Use
Historical information on the use of soapwort can be found in John Gerarde’s The herbal, or Generall historie of plantes written in 1633. The leaves were brewed and put over cuts on the fingers, hands and legs to speed up the healing process. It was also used to assist with expelling of kidney stones by provoking the flow of urine. There was speculation that soapwort would vernal diseases, but there wasn’t sufficient evidence to prove this claim.
Latest Research
- The Oral Administration of Sanguisorba officinalis Extract Improves Physical Performance through LDHA Modulationby Jung Ho Han on April 3, 2021 at 10:00 am
Muscle fatigue is induced by an acute or chronic physical performance inability after excessive physical activity often associated with lactate accumulation, the end-product of glycolysis. In this study, the water-extracted roots of Sanguisorba officinalis L., a herbal medicine traditionally used for inflammation and diarrhea, reduced the activities of lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA) in in vitro enzyme assay myoblast C2C12 cells and murine muscle tissue. Physical performance measured by a…
- Sanguisorba officinalis L. derived from herbal medicine prevents intestinal inflammation by inducing autophagy in macrophagesby Asuka Yasueda on June 21, 2020 at 10:00 am
Disturbed activation of autophagy is implicated in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease. Accordingly, several autophagy-related genes have been identified as Crohn’s disease susceptibility genes. We screened the autophagy activators from a library including 3,922 natural extracts using a high-throughput assay system. The extracts identified as autophagy activators were administered to mice with 2% dextran sodium sulfate (DSS). Among the autophagy inducers, Sanguisorba officinalis L….
- Phytotherapeutic Activities of Sanguisorba officinalis and its Chemical Constituents: A Reviewby Eungyeong Jang on February 14, 2018 at 11:00 am
Sanguisorba officinalis Linne (S. officinalis, Rosaceae) has been used as a medicinal plant for the treatment of burns, hematemesis, melena, intestinal infections, and dermatitis for a long time in China, Korea, and Japan. The therapeutic efficacy of this herb is intimately associated with its anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antifungal, hemostatic, and anticancer activities. Its root contains triterpenoid saponins (zigyuglycoside I: C[Formula: see text]H[Formula: see text]O[Formula:…
- Sanguisorba officinalis L. Extracts Exert Antiobesity Effects in 3T3-L1 Adipocytes and C57BL/6J Mice Fed High-Fat Dietsby Da-Woon Jung on June 17, 2016 at 10:00 am
The purpose of this study was to investigate the antiobesity effect of Sanguisorba officinalis L. (SOL) in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and obese C57BL/6J mice. SOL was extracted with water and 30%, 50%, 70%, and 100% ethanol (EtOH). 3T3-L1 adipocytes were treated with SOL extracts (100 μg/mL) during the differentiation period. Triglyceride (TG) accumulation was determined by Oil Red O staining, and the expression of adipocyte-specific proteins was measured by Western blot analysis. C57BL/6J mice were fed…
- Ethanol extracts of Sanguisorba officinalis L. suppress TNF-alpha/IFN-gamma-induced pro-inflammatory chemokine production in HaCaT cellsby Ju-Hye Yang on December 15, 2015 at 11:00 am
CONCLUSION: Our results suggest the preventive potential of ESOL as a herbal medicine for the treatment of inflammatory skin diseases.
References
Jia, Z., Koike, K., & Nikaido, T. (1998). Major triterpenoid saponins from saponaria officinalis. Journal of Natural Products, 61(11), 1368-1373. doi:10.1021/np980167u
Koike, K., Jia, Z., & Nikaido, T. (1999). New triterpenoid saponins and sapogenins from Saponaria officinalis. Journal of Natural Products, 62(12), 1655-1659. doi:10.1021/np990311r
Smulek, W., Zdarta, A., Pacholak, A., Zgola-Grzeskowiak, A., Marczak, L., Jarzebski, M., & Kaczorek, E. (2017). Saponaria officinalis L. extract: Surface active properties and impact on environmental bacterial strains. Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces, 150, 209-215. doi:10.1016/j.colsurfb.2016.11.035
Thakur, M., Jerz, G., Tuwalska, D., Gilabert-Oriol, R., Wybraniec, S., Winterhalter, P., . . . Weng, A. (2014). High-speed countercurrent chromatographic recovery and off-line electrospray ionization mass spectrometry profiling of bisdesmodic saponins from Saponaria officinalis possessing synergistic toxicity enhancing properties on targeted antitumor toxins. Journal of Chromatography. B: Analytical Technologies in the Biomedical and Life Sciences, 955-956, 1-9. doi:10.1016/j.jchromb.2014.02.008
Other Resources
Natural Medicines record: Red Soapwort (Access to UI only)