Saussurea is a genus of about 300 species offlowering plants in the tribeCardueae within the familyAsteraceae, native to cooltemperate andarctic regions ofEast Asia, Europe, and North America, with the highest diversity inalpine habitats in theHimalayas and East Asia. Common names includesaw-wort andsnow lotus, the latter used for a number of high altitude species in East Asia.
They areperennialherbaceous plants, ranging in height from dwarf alpine species 5–10 cm (2–4 in) tall, to tallthistle-like plants up to 3 m (9.8 ft) tall. Theleaves are produced in a dense basal rosette, and then spirally up the flowering stem. Theflowers form in a dense head of smallcapitula, often surrounded by dense white to purple woolly hairs; the individual florets are also white to purple. The wool is densest in the high altitude species, and aids in the thermoregulation of the flowers, minimising frost damage at night and also preventingultraviolet light damage from the intense high-altitude sunlight.
A number of the high alpine Himalayan species are grown asornamental plants for their decorative dense woolly flowerheads; they are among the most challenging plants to grow, being adapted to harsh climates from 3,000 to 5,000 m (9,800 to 16,400 ft) altitude, demanding cool temperatures, a very long (up to 8–10 months) winter rest period, and very good soil drainage in humus-rich gravel soils.
Several varieties of snow lotus are used in traditional Tibetan medicine.Saussurea lappa is used a component of the traditional Tibetan medicine Padma 28. Research conducted on the Himalayan medicinal plants byC.P. Kala reveals that the practitioners of Tibetan medicine living in the Pin Valley of Himachal Pradesh use its root for curing dysentery and ulcer.[4]Saussurea laniceps,Saussurea involucrata andSaussurea medusa flowers and stems have long been used intraditional Chinese medicine for the treatment ofrheumatoid arthritis, cough with cold, stomachache,dysmenorrhea, and altitude sickness, and has been found to have antiinflammatory and analgesic effects,[5] as well as cardiotonic, abortifacient, anticancer,[6] and antifatigue actions.[citation needed]Saussurea laniceps have been proven to be more effective thanSaussurea involucrata and Saussurea medusa.[7]
Saussurea obvallata is one of the most sacred species in India, and has been used for offerings to goddess Nanda Devi for time immemorial.[8][9]
Saussurea lappa and has been shown to inhibit themRNA expression ofiNOS bylipopolysaccharide stimulatedmacrophages, thus reducingnitric oxide production.[citation needed] In rats, high doses of 50–200 milligrams per kilogram of crude ethanolic extract reduced observed inflammation in standard laboratory tests, and 25–100 milligrams per kilogram of thesesquiterpene fraction of the extract reduced several molecular markers of inflammation.[10][11] Ethanol extracts were shown to have analgesic and antiinflammatory effects at high doses of 75–300 milligrams per kilogram. As the slow-growing wild plant is endangered by collections, a substitute grown in tissue culture has been suggested, which is mostly equivalent. Generally the analgesic and antiinflammatory effects of the plant are much inferior to those ofindometacin.
^Candolle, A.P. de, inAnnales du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle. 16:197-198
^Moeslinger, T; Friedl, R; Volf, I; Brunner, M; Koller, E; Spieckermann, PG (2000). "Inhibition of inducible nitric oxide synthesis by the herbal preparation Padma 28 in macrophage cell line".Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology.78 (11):861–6.doi:10.1139/cjpp-78-11-861.PMID11100933.
^Kala, Chandra Prakash (2005). "Indigenous uses, population density and conservation of threatened medicinal plants in protected areas of India Himalaya".Conservation Biology.19 (2):368–378.doi:10.1111/j.1523-1739.2005.00602.x.S2CID85324142.
^Damre, AA; Damre, AS; Saraf, MN (2003). "Evaluation of sesquiterpene lactone fraction of Saussurea lappa on transudative, exudative and proliferative phases of inflammation".Phytotherapy Research.17 (7):722–5.doi:10.1002/ptr.1152.PMID12916066.S2CID39651463.
^Gokhale, AB; Damre, AS; Kulkami, KR; Saraf, MN (2002). "Preliminary evaluation of anti-inflammatory and anti-arthritic activity of S. Lappa, A. Speciosa and A. Aspera".Phytomedicine.9 (5):433–7.doi:10.1078/09447110260571689.PMID12222664.
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