Chelidonium majus, thegreater celandine, is aperennialherbaceousflowering plant in the poppy familyPapaveraceae. One of two species in the genusChelidonium, it is native to Europe and western Asia andintroduced widely in North America.
Chelidonium majus | |
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Scientific classification![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Ranunculales |
Family: | Papaveraceae |
Tribe: | Chelidonieae |
Genus: | Chelidonium |
Species: | C. majus |
Binomial name | |
Chelidonium majus | |
Synonyms[1][2] | |
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The plant known as lesser celandine (Ficaria verna) is not closely related, as it belongs to the buttercup family Ranunculaceae.
Description
editGreater celandine is a perennial herbaceous plant with an erect habit, and reaches 30–120 cm (12–47 in) high. The blue-green[3] leaves arepinnate with lobed and wavy margins, up to 30 cm (12 in) long. When injured, the plant exudes a yellow to orangelatex.[3][4]: 96
The flowers consist of four yellow petals, each about 18 mm (0.71 in) long, with twosepals. A double-flowered variety occurs naturally. The flowers appear from late spring to summer, May to September (in the UK),[3] inumbelliformcymes of about four flowers.
The seeds are small and black, borne in a long, cylindricalcapsule. Each has anelaiosome, which attracts ants to disperse the seeds (myrmecochory).[3]
Taxonomy and naming
editChelidonium majus is one of the many species described by the father of taxonomy,Carl Linnaeus, in volume one of hisSpecies Plantarum in 1753.[5]
According to theOxford English Dictionary, the namecelandine comes fromLate Latincelidonia, from earlier Latinchelidonia orchelidonium, and ultimately fromAncient Greekχελιδόνιον, fromχελιδών (chelidṓn) 'swallow', hence the common nameswallowwort. Ancient writers said that the flower bloomed when the swallows returned and faded when they left.[6][7]Chelidonium majus has also been calledgreat celandine,[8]nipplewort,[8]tetterwort,[9] or simplycelandine.[8] The common nametetterwort also refers toSanguinaria canadensis.[10]
Distribution and habitat
editChelidonium majus isnative in most regions of Europe. It is also found in North Africa inMacaronesia,Algeria andMorocco. In Western Asia it is found in theCaucasus,Armenia,Azerbaijan,Georgia,Kazakhstan,Mongolia,Siberia,Iran andTurkey.[8] Its habitats include rocky slopes, woodlands, waste areas, and roadsides.[11]
Ecology
editIt is considered an aggressive invasive plant in parts of North America, and an invasive plant in other areas. InWisconsin, for example, it is a restricted plant.[12][13] Control is obtained mainly via pulling or spraying the plant before seed dispersal.
Constituents and pharmacology
editThe whole plant is toxic in moderate doses as it contains a range ofisoquinoline alkaloids; use in herbal medicine requires the correct dose.[14] The main alkaloid present in theherb androot iscoptisine. Other alkaloids present include methyl 2'-(7,8-dihydrosanguinarine-8-yl)acetate,allocryptopine,[15]stylopine,protopine, cryptopine, hemochelidonine, homochelidonine,norchelidonine,berberine,chelidonine,sanguinarine,chelerythrine,[16] and8-hydroxydihydrosanguinarine.[17] Sanguinarine is particularly toxic with anLD50 of 18 mg per kg body weight (IP in rats).[18]Caffeic acid derivatives, such ascaffeoylmalic acid, are also present.[19]
The characteristic latex also containsproteolytic enzymes and the phytocystatinchelidostatin, acysteine protease inhibitor.[20] It is a traditional folk remedy againstwarts in France[21] and the UK. It is used in the preparation of a range of off-the-shelf treatments for warts and skin conditions.[22]
Chelidonium is used to makeUkrain, a drug that has been promoted for, but is not known to be effective for, the treatment of cancer and viral infections.[23][24]
The fresh herb is no longer used officially. No dose-finding studies exist and the reported clinical studies are characterised by a considerable heterogeneity.[25]
Except for homeopathic medicines, the drug is no longer used in most English-speaking countries. In Germany and Switzerland, extracts of Chelidoni herba are a controversial component of the gastric remedy "Iberogast". The OTC-preparation is a top-selling product for the companyBayer, which is now under investigation for not warning consumers from possible hepatotoxic side-effects when taking the drug. Elevated liver-enzymes and toxic hepatitis with a documented fatality have been reported.[26][27]
The plant is poisonous to chickens.[28]
Herbalism
editThe aerial parts and roots of greater celandine are used in herbalism. The above-ground parts are gathered during the flowering season and dried at high temperatures. The root is harvested in autumn between August and October and dried. The fresh rhizome is also used. Celandine has a hot and bitter taste. Preparations are made fromalcoholic and hot aqueous extractions. The related plantbloodroot has similar chemical composition and uses as greater celandine.
As far back asPliny the Elder andDioscorides (1st century CE) this herb has been recognized as a useful detoxifying agent. The root has been chewed to relieve toothache.[29]John Gerard'sHerball (1597) states that "the juice of the herbe is good to sharpen the sight, for it cleanseth and consumeth away slimie things that cleave about the ball of the eye and hinder the sight and especially being boiled with honey in a brasen vessell."[30]
It was formerly used by someRomani people as a foot refresher; modern herbalists use itspurgative properties.[31]The modernherbalistJuliette de Baïracli Levy recommended greater celandine diluted with milk for the eyes and the latex for getting rid of warts.[32]Chelidonium was a favourite herb of the French herbalistMaurice Mességué.Chelidonium majus has traditionally been used for treatment of various inflammatory diseases includingatopic dermatitis.[33] It is also traditionally used in the treatment of gallstones and dyspepsia.[34]
TheIroquois give aninfusion of whole plant, another plant and milk to pigs that drool and have sudden movements.[35][clarification needed]
It was also once used to treat liver disorders, owing to the juice's resemblance to bile.[28]
Gallery
edit- A leaf and an open flower
- Flowers
- Fruits
References
edit- ^"Chelidonium minus L.".World Checklist of Selected Plant Families.Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved2018-07-28 – viaThe Plant List. Note that this website has been superseded byWorld Flora Online
- ^"Chelidonium majus subsp. grandiflorum (DC.) Printz".World Checklist of Selected Plant Families.Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved2018-07-28 – viaThe Plant List. Note that this website has been superseded byWorld Flora Online
- ^abcdReader's Digest Field Guide to the Wild Flowers of Britain.Reader's Digest. 1981. p. 30.ISBN 978-0-276-00217-5.
- ^Stace, C. A. (2019).New Flora of the British Isles (Fourth ed.). Middlewood Green, Suffolk, U.K.: C & M Floristics.ISBN 978-1-5272-2630-2.
- ^Linnaeus C (1753)."Tomus I".Species Plantarum (in Latin). Vol. 1. Stockholm: Laurentii Salvii. p. 505.
- ^"Swallow".Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition. Oxford University Press, Oxford. 1989.
- ^Hanzlik, P.J. (1920). "The pharmacology of chelidonin, a neglected alkaloid of chelidonium, or tetterwort".Journal of the American Medical Association.75 (20):1324–1325.doi:10.1001/jama.1920.02620460022007.
- ^abcd"Chelidonium majus".Germplasm Resources Information Network.Agricultural Research Service,United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved10 August 2020.
- ^Xu, J.P. (2016).Cancer Inhibitors from Chinese Natural Medicines. CRC Press. p. 441.ISBN 978-1-4987-8766-6. Retrieved2023-08-23.
- ^Predny, M.L.; Chamberlain, J.L.; United States. National Park Service (2005).Bloodroot (Sanguinaria Canadensis): An Annotated Bibliography. General technical report SRS. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station. Retrieved2023-08-23.
- ^"Chelidonium majus - Plant Finder".www.missouribotanicalgarden.org. Retrieved2024-03-30.
- ^"Chapter NR 40 INVASIVE SPECIES IDENTIFICATION, CLASSIFICATION AND CONTROL"(PDF). wisconsin.gov. Retrieved3 November 2017.
- ^"Invasive Plant Atlas of New England". Archived fromthe original on 2015-07-30. Retrieved2015-06-03.
- ^Gruenwald, Joerg (2000).PDR for Herbal Medicines. Thomson PDR.ISBN 978-1-56363-361-4.
- ^Cahlikova L., Opletal L., Kurfurst M., Macakova K., Kulhankova A., Host'alkova A.,"Acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory compounds from Chelidonium majus (Papaveraceae)."Natural Product Communications. 5 (11) (pp 1751–1754), 2010. Date of Publication: 2010.
- ^Li X.-L., Yao J.-Y., Zhou Z.-M., Shen J.-Y., Ru H.-S., Liu X.-L.,"Activity of the chelerythrine, a quaternary benzo[c]phenanthridine alkaloid from Chelidonium majus L. on Dactylogyrus intermedius."Parasitology Research. 109 (1) (pp 247-252), July 2011
- ^Park J.E., Cuong T.D., Hung T.M., Lee I., Na M., Kim J.C., Ryoo S., Lee J.H., Choi J.S., Woo M.H., Min B.S.,"Alkaloids from Chelidonium majus and their inhibitory effects on LPS-induced NO production in RAW264.7 cells".Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters. 21 (23) (pp 6960-6963), 2011. Date of Publication: 01 Dec 2011.
- ^Golob, Peter; Caroline Moss; Melanie Dales; Alex Fidgen; Jenny Evans; Irene Gudrups (1999).The use of spices and medicinals as bioactive protectants for grains. FAO Agricultural Services Bulletin. Vol. 137.Rome:Food and Agriculture Organization.ISBN 978-92-5-104294-6. Retrieved2008-07-17.
- ^Hahn, R.; Nahrstedt, A. (1993). "Hydroxycinnamic Acid Derivatives, Caffeoylmalic and New Caffeoylaldonic Acid Esters, from Chelidonium majus*,1".Planta Medica.59 (1):71–5.doi:10.1055/s-2006-959608.PMID 17230338.S2CID 21131585.
- ^Rogelj, B.; et al. (1998). "Chelidocystatin, a novel phytocystatin from Chelidonium majus".Phytochemistry.49 (6):1645–9.Bibcode:1998PChem..49.1645R.doi:10.1016/s0031-9422(98)00281-7.PMID 9862139.
- ^La chélidoine, une plante contre la verrue dans Science et avenir 2016
- ^"Celandine (Greater) / Greater Celandine - Wild Flower Finder".
- ^"Celandine".American Cancer Society. August 2011. Archived fromthe original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved5 September 2013.
- ^Edzard Ernst (14 October 2012)."A telling story about "alternative" cancer cures and their purveyors". RetrievedDecember 4, 2012.
- ^"Assessment report on Chelidonium majus L., herba"(PDF). European Medicines Agency. September 13, 2011.
- ^F. Pantano, G. Mannocchi, E. Marinelli, S. Gentili, S. Graziano, F.P. Busardò, N.M. di Luca"Hepatotoxicity induced by greater celandine (Chelidonium majus L.): a review of the literature." Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 2017; 21 (1 Suppl): 46-52. Retrieved 21 July 2019
- ^Aiolfi S (July 2019).Bayer-Medikament im Fokus der Staatsanwaltschaft(in German). Neue Zürcher Zeitung. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
- ^abNiering, William A.; Olmstead, Nancy C. (1985) [1979].The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers, Eastern Region. Knopf. p. 671.ISBN 0-394-50432-1.
- ^Chevallier, Andrew (1996).The encyclopedia of medicinal plants. New York: DK Publishing. p. 185.ISBN 978-0-7894-1067-2.
- ^Grieve, Maud (1971).A Modern Herbal: The Medicinal, Culinary, Cosmetic and Economic Properties, Cultivation and Folk-lore of Herbs, Grasses, Fungi, Shrubs, & Trees with All Their Modern Scientific Uses, Volume 1.
- ^Howard, Michael (1987-05-21).Traditional Folk Remedies. Century Paperbacks. Ebury Press. pp. 146–147.ISBN 978-0-7126-1731-4.
- ^Bailes M., "The Healing Garden",ISBN 978-0-7318-0753-6
- ^Gabsik Yang; Kyungjin Lee; Mi-Hwa Lee; So-Hyung Kim; In-Hye Ham; Ho-Young Choi (2011). "Inhibitory effects ofChelidonium majus extract on atopic dermatitis-like skin lesions in NC/Nga mice".Journal of Ethnopharmacology.138 (2):398–403.doi:10.1016/j.jep.2011.09.028.PMID 21963561.
- ^Gabriela Mazzanti; Antonella di Sotto; Antonio Franchitto; Caterina Loredana Mammola; Paola Mariani; Sabina Mastrangelo; Francesca Menniti-Ippolito; Annabella Vitalone (2009). "Chelidonium majus is not hepatotoxic in Wistar rats, in a 4 weeks feeding experiment".Journal of Ethnopharmacology.126 (3):518–524.doi:10.1016/j.jep.2009.09.004.PMID 19761826.
- ^Rousseau, Jacques 1945 Le Folklore Botanique De Caughnawaga. Contributions de l'Institut botanique l'Universite de Montreal 55:7-72 (p. 45)