Chamomile


Clinical Studies


Chamomile is used for insomnia, anxiety, indigestion, nausea, gastrointestinal diseases, painful menstrual periods, flatulence, sinusitis and rheumatic disorders. Chamomile is also used in liver and gallbladder disease, chronic heartburn, indigestion in infants and in spastic constipation. It is used as a general female tonic and a preventative for menstrual discomforts.


Published Clinical Studies
Chamomile


[The immunomodulating activity of the heteropolysaccharides from German chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) during air and immersion cooling]

Uteshev BS, Laskova IL, Afanas'ev VA.

Russian State Medical University, Moscow, Russia.

Intragastric and parenteral administration of heteropolysaccharides of Matricaria chamomilla L. is found to normalize developing of the immune response upon air cooling and enhance (but do not normalize) this process upon immersion cooling. The immunomodulating effect of the heteropolysaccharides upon cooling is attributed to initiation of immunostimulating properties of heavy erythrocytes (macrocytes), activization of immunoregulation cells of peripheral blood, and increased sensitivity of effector cells to helper signals.

PMID: 10650529 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

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Flavonoids and the central nervous system: from forgotten factors to potent anxiolytic compounds.

Paladini AC, Marder M, Viola H, Wolfman C, Wasowski C, Medina JH.

Instituto de Quimica y Fisicoquimica Biologicas, Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquimica, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The list of activities of plant flavonoids did not include effects on the central nervous system (CNS) up to 1990, when our laboratory described the existence of natural anxiolytic flavonoids. The first of these was chrysin (5,7-dihydroxyflavone), followed by apigenin (5,7,4'-trihydroxyflavone) and flavone itself. Semisynthetic derivatives of flavone obtained by introducing halogens, nitro groups or both in its molecule, give rise to high affinity ligands for the benzodiazepine receptor, active in-vivo; 6,3'-dinitroflavone, for example, is an anxiolytic drug 30 times more potent than diazepam. The data collected in this paper make clear that some natural flavonoids are CNS-active molecules and that the chemical modification of the flavone nucleus dramatically increases their anxiolytic potency.

PMID: 10411210 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

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Flavonoids (apigenin, tangeretin) counteract tumor promoter-induced inhibition of intercellular communication of rat liver epithelial cells.

Chaumontet C, Droumaguet C, Bex V, Heberden C, Gaillard-Sanchez I, Martel P.

Laboratoire de Nutrition et Securite Alimentaire, INRA, Jouy en Josas, France.

We have shown previously that two flavonoids, apigenin and tangeretin, enhance gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) in rat liver epithelial cells, named REL cells. Here, we show that these two flavones also antagonize the inhibition of GJIC induced by tumor promoters like 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-acetate (TPA) and 3,5,di-tertio-butyl-4-hydroxytoluene (BHT). Their preventive effect is rapid. It does not seem to involve any change of the amount of the connexin expressed in REL cells, connexin 43 (Cx 43), and in its phosphorylation state. Other flavonoids tested including naringenin, myricetin, catechin and chrysin did not enhance GJIC nor counteract TPA-induced inhibition of GJIC.

PMID: 9103293 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

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Investigation of the effect of chamazulene on lipid peroxidation and free radical processes.

Rekka EA, Kourounakis AP, Kourounakis PN.

Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki, Greece.

Oxygen toxicity and related free radical reactions are implicated in numerous pathophysiological conditions, like atherosclerosis, inflammation, gastric ulceration, neuronal degeneration, tumour promotion. The flowers of Matricaria chamomilla, Asteraceae, have been used therapeutically for conditions in which oxidative stress is supposed to be implicated. We considered interesting to investigate the effect of Chamazulene, the active substance of chamomile, on free radical processes. Membrane lipid peroxidation was induced by Fe2+/ascorbate and assessed as the 2-thiobarbituric acid reactive material. The hydroxyl radical scavenging activity was studied as the competition of Chamazulene with DMSO for HO. generated by Fe3+/ascorbate. Finally, the interaction of Chamazulene with the N-centered stable free radical DPPH was estimated photometrically (517 nm). It was found that Chamazulene inhibited lipid peroxidation in a concentration and time dependent manner presenting an IC50 of 18 microM after 45 min incubation. It could also inhibit the autoxidation of DMSO (33 mM) by 76% at 25 mM, and had a weak capacity to interact with DPPH. In conclusion, Chamazulene presents interesting properties concerning radical processes.

PMID: 8827832 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

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Apigenin, a component of Matricaria recutita flowers, is a central benzodiazepine receptors-ligand with anxiolytic effects.

Viola H, Wasowski C, Levi de Stein M, Wolfman C, Silveira R, Dajas F, Medina JH, Paladini AC.

Instituto de Biologia Celular, Facultad de Medicina, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The dried flower heads of Matricaria recutita L. (Asteraceae) are used in folk medicine to prepare a spasmolytic and sedative tea. Our fractionation of the aqueous extract of this plant led to the detection of several fractions with significant affinity for the central benzodiazepine receptor and to the isolation and identification of 5,7,4'-trihydroxyflavone (apigenin) in one of them. Apigenin competitively inhibited the binding of flunitrazepam with a Ki of 4 microM and had no effect on muscarinic receptors, alpha 1-adrenoceptors, and on the binding of muscimol to GABAA receptors. Apigenin had a clear anxiolytic activity in mice in the elevated plusmaze without evidencing sedation or muscle relaxant effects at doses similar to those used for classical benzodiazepines and no anticonvulsant action was detected. However, a 10-fold increase in dosage produced a mild sedative effect since a 26% reduction in ambulatory locomotor activity and a 35% decrement in hole-board parameters were evident. The results reported in this paper demonstrate that apigenin is a ligand for the central benzodiazepine receptors exerting anxiolytic and slight sedative effects but not being anticonvulsant or myorelaxant.

PMID: 7617761 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]