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| AMOR SECO |
Family: Fabaceae
Genus: Desmodium
Species: adscendens
Common Names: Amor Seco, Strong Back, Carrapicho,
Pega Pega, Margarita, Burbur, Manayupa, Hard Man, Hard Stick, Mundubirana,
Barba de Boi, Mundurana, Owono-bocon, Dipinda Dimukuyi, Dusa Karnira
Parts used: Aerial Parts, Leave |
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| DESCRIPTION |
Properties/Actions: |
Anti-anaphylactic, Antiasthmatic, Antihistamine, Anti-inflammatory, Antispasmodic, Bronchiodilator, Depurative, Diuretic, Laxative, Vulnerary |
Phytochemicals: |
Astragalin, Beta-phenylethylamines, Cosmosiin, Cyanidin-3-o-sophoroside, Dehydrosoyasaponin I, Hordenine, Pelargonidin-3-o-rhamnoside, Salsoline, Soyasaponin I, Soyasaponin II, Soyasaponin III, Tectorigenin, Tetrahydroisoquinolines, Triterpenoid Saponins, Tyramine |
Traditional Remedy:
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One-half cup whole herb decoction 2-3 times daily or 3-4 ml tincture twice daily. 1-5 grams in tablets or capsules twice daily can be substituted if desired. See Traditional Herbal Remedies Preparation Methods page if necessary for definitions. |
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| ETHNOBOTANY WORLDWIDE USES |
Africa |
Asthma, Bronchitis, Colic, Ringworms, Wounds |
Amazonia |
Consumption, Contraceptive, Convulsion, Galactagogue, Magic, Nervousness, Vaginal Infections, Venereal Disease, Wounds |
Belize |
Ache(Back), Ache(Head), Ache(Joint), Ache(Muscle), Kidney Disorders |
Brazil
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Ache(Body), Blenorrhagia, Diarrhea, Leucorrhea, Malaria |
Elsewhere
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Cataplasm, Consumption, Convulsion, Cough, Fracture, Laxative, Sore, Venereal Disease, Wound |
Ghana |
Asthma, Colic, Constipation, Dysentery, Wounds |
Guinea |
Anthelmintic, Oxytoxic |
Ivory Coast |
Aphrodisiac, Galactagogue |
Liberia |
Convulsion, Sore, Venereal Disease |
Nicaragua |
Diarrhea, Digestive, Venereal Disease |
Peru |
Blood, Detoxifier, Hemorrhage, Inflammation, Ovary, Urinary, Vaginitis |
Trinidad |
Depurative, Marasmius, Oliguria, Venereal Disease |
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Amor Seco is a multi branched weedy perennial herb which grows 50 cm tall and produces numerous light purple flowers and small green fruits/bean in 3 cm long pods. It is indigenous to many tropical countries, found growing in open forests, pastures, yards and roadsides. |
Tribes in the Amazon Rainforest use Amor Seco medicinally today much as they have for many years. The plant is infused in water and given to people who suffer from nervousness and used in baths to treat vaginal infections.(1) Some tribes believe the plant has magic powers and it is given to the lover who has lost interest in his mate to make him/her come back.(1) Rio Pastaza natives in the Amazon brew a leaf tea and wash the breast of dry mothers with it to promote lactation.(2) Other Amazon tribes use Amor Seco as a contraceptive.(3) Additional indigenous tribal uses include using leaf decoction for consumption, pounded leaves are applied with lime juice to wounds, and a leaf infusion is used for convulsions and venereal sores.(4) A ethnobotanical survey interviewing over 8,000 natives in various parts of Brazil showed that a decoction of the dried roots of Amor Seco is a popular tribal remedy for malaria.(5) The Garifuna indigenous tribe in Nicaragua use a leaf decoction of Amor Seco internally for diarrhea, venereal disease and a digestive aid.(6)
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Amor Seco is also quite popular in herbal medicine throughout South and Central America. In Peruvian herbal medicine today, a leaf tea is used as a blood cleanser, to detoxify the body from environmental toxins and chemicals, as a urinary tract cleanser, and to treat ovarian problems such as inflammation and irritation, vaginal discharges, and hemorrhages.(7) In Belize, the plant is called Strong Back and the entire plant is soaked in rum for 24 hours and 1/4 cup taken three times daily for 7-10 days for backache. Alternatively, an entire plant is boiled in 3 cups of water for 10 minutes and 1 cup of warm tea is taken before meals for 3-5 days relief of backache, muscle pains, kidney ailments and impotency.(8) In Brazilian herbal medicine, the dried leaves are used for the treatment of leucorrhea, body aches and pains, blenorrhagia and diarrhea.(9) In Ghana, a leaf decoction is taken for constipation, dysentery, and colic as well as used to dress wounds.(10) |
Herbalists in Ghana have long used a Amor Seco leaves to treat bronchial asthma with such success that scientists became interested in clinically testing this natural remedy. A 1977 clinical study on humans showed that a 1-2 teaspoons of dried Amor Seco leaf powder given in 3 divided dosages daily produced improvement and remission in most asthma patients treated.(10, 11) In an effort to understand the mechanism of action of this effective natural remedy, scientists conducted animal studies to determine it's anti-asthmatic properties. The subsequent animal studies with guinea pigs showed that aqueous or ethanolic extracts of Amor Seco taken orally reduce anaphylactic contraction, interfere with histamine-induced contractions and reduce the amount of smooth-muscle stimulating substances released from lung tissue.(12 - 16 ) Further studies with guinea pigs showed that Amor Seco leaf extract caused a dose-dependant reduction in the amount of spasmogens released anaphylactically and an anaphylactic-induced contraction of ileal muscle.(17-20) These actions were cited as the basis for the beneficial effects observed in asthmatic patients treated summarizing the research by saying: "From the preliminary work cited above, it would seem that D. adscendens has a potential for being a useful antiasthmatic agent and warrants a thorough investigation."(10)
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Today, Abuta is still used in the Amazon and outlying areas for the same purposes that it has been traditionally used for. In addition, South and North American natural health practitioners use Abuta to help relieve symptoms associated with menstruation and to help balance female hormones.(4) Other recent reported uses include relief for inflammation of the testicles and minor kidney problems.(7) Leaf, vinebark or root decoctions or macerations mixed with other ingredients is how Abuta has been traditionally prepared. It can be administered orally or applied directly to affected areas (e.g. snakebites). Documented uses in traditional medicine show that Abuta is used for diuretic, expectorant, emmenagogue, and febrifuge purposes, and to prevent threatened abortion, relieve menorrhagia, and arrest uterine hemorrhages.(24) It is also used in homeopathy in the form of a mother tincture.(3) |
Whether or not scientists fully understand and explain Amor Seco's effectiveness or develop this plant into a proprietary asthma drug, natural health practitioners and herbalists will continue to use this wonderful herbal remedy effectively for asthma as well as allergies. With some of the money1er published research linking arthritis and rheumatism to various allergic reactions and anaphylactic-induced chemical processes, the indigenous use of Amor Seco for back pain and arthritis just might be explained as well. Ease of administering Amor Seco in powdered capsules or in tea, highly effective results at low dosages, and no reported side effects or toxicity make Amor Seco the first in the line of defense in the herbalist's medicine chest of natural remedies.
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| Footnotes: |
- Duke, James & Vasquez, Rudolfo, 1994 Amazonian
Ethnobotanical Dictionary, CRC Press Inc.: Boca Raton, FL
- Schultes, R.E., and Raffauf, 1990. The Healing Forest.
Medicinal and Toxic Plants of the Northwest Amazonia, R.F.
Dioscorides Press: Portland Oregon.
- Vasquez, M. R., 1990 Useful Plants of Amazonian Peru. Second
Draft. Filed with USDA's National Agricultural Library. USA
- Duke, J.A. 1978. Isthmian Ethnobotanical Dictionary. 2nd ed.
Paperback. 96 pp
- Brandao, M., et.al., 1992. Survey of Medicinal Plants Used as
Antimalarials in the Amazon. J Ethnopharmacol 36 2: 175-182 (1992)
- Coee, F., et.al., 1996. Ethnobotany of the Garifuna of Eastern
Nicaragua. Econ Bot 50 1: 71-107 (1996)
- Herboper, SA. Lima, Peru. Packaging inserts on instuctions of use
for Manayupa [Amor Seco] leaves.
- Arvigo, Rosita and Balick, Michael 1993. Rainforest Remedies,
One Hundred Healing Herbs of Belize. Lotus Press, Twin Lakes, WI.
- Cruz, G.L. 1995. Dicionario Das Plantas Uteis Do Brasil,
5th ed., Bertrand: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Boye, G & Ampopo, O, 1990. "Plants and Traditional Medicine in
Ghana" Economic and Medicinal Plant Research Vol 4, pp 33-34
Academic Press Ltd., Devon, England
- Ampofo, O. 1977. Plants That Heal. World Health 1977 : 26-30
(1977)
- Addy, M.E., et al., 1984. Effects of the Extracts of Desmodium
adscendens on Anaphylaxis. J Ethnopharmacol 11 3: 283-292
(1984)
- Addy, M.E., et al., 1989. Effect of Desmodium adscendens Fraction
F1 (DAFL) on Tone and Agonist-induced Contractions of Guinea Pig
Airway Smooth Muscle. Phytother Res 3 3: 85-90
- Addy, M.E., et al., 1987. Effect of Desmodium adscendens Fractions
on Antigen- and Arachidonic Acid-induced Contractions of Guinea Pig
Airways. Can J Physiol Pharmacol 66 6: 820-825 (1987)
- Addy, M.E., et al., 1987. Dose Response Effect of One Subfraction
of Desmodium adscendens Aqueous Extract on Antigen- and Arachidonic
Acid-induced Contractions of Guinea-pig Airways. Phytother
Res 1 4: 180-186 (1987)
- Addy, M.E., et al., 1990. Effect of Desmodium adscendens Fraction
3 on Contractions of Respiratory Smooth Muscle. J
Ethnopharmacol 29 3: 325-335 (1990)
- Addy, M.E., et al., 1986. Dose-response Effects of Desmodium
adscendens Aqueous Extract on Histamine Response, Content and
Anaphylactic Reactions in the Guinea Pig. J Ethnopharmacol 18
1: 13-20 (1986)
- Addy, M.E., et al., 1989. Several Chromatographically Distinct
Fractions of Desmodium adscendens Inhibit Smooth Muscle Contractions. Int J Crude Drug Res 27 2: 81-91 (1989)
- Addy, M.E., et al., 1995. An Extract of Desmodium adscendens
Activates Cyclooxygenase and Increases Prostaglandin Synthesis by Ram
Seminal Vesicle Microsomes. Phytother Res 9 4: 287-293 (1995)
- Addy, M.E., et al., 1992. Some Secondary Plant Metabolites in
Desmodium adscendens and Their Effects on Arachidonic Acid
Metabolism. Prostaglandins Leukotrienes Essent Fatty Acids 47
1: 85-91 (1992
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| Quoted References |
10 "Desmodium adscendens (Sw.)
DC. Fabaceae. "Amor seco", "Beggar-lice", "Margarita". The plant
infusion is given to people who suffer from nervousness. It is also is
used in baths to treat vaginal infections. Because they believe this
plant has magic powers, it is given to the lover who has lost interest
in his mate, to make him/her come back. It is also used as a
contraceptive (RVM). Rio Pastaza natives wash the breast of dry mothers
with the leaf tea (SAR)." 16 "Traditional Uses: Soak the entire
plant in rum for 24 hours and use as a cordial for relief of backache;
take 1/4 glass 3 times daily for 7-10 days. Boil 1 entire plant in 3
cups water for 10 minutes; drink 1 cup warm tea before meals for 3-5
days for relief of backache, muscle pains, kidney ailments, and
impotency. Use decoction of entire plant to bathe head to relieve
headaches; bathe body to relieve joint aches.
Research
Results: In Ghana and Sierra Leone, the plant is used in traditional
medicine to treat asthma (Macfoy and Sama 1983). When the use of this
plant against asthma was studied in Ghana, 1-2 teaspoons of dry powder
given in 3 divided doses daily prevented asthma in an adult (Ampofo
1977). In guinea pigs, antispasmodic activity was observed from a hot
water extract of an unspecified part of this plant (Addy and Dzandu
1986)." Tico Ethnobotanical Dictionary. "DESMODIUM ADSCENDENS DC.
Beggarlice (E); Pega-pega (P). A leaf decoction is drunk for
consumption. Pounded leaves are applied with limejuice to wounds. A leaf
infusion is used for convulsions and venereal sores." |
| Clinical Abstracts |
Effects
of an ethanolic extract of Desmodium adscendens on central nervous
system in rodents.
J Ethnopharmacol 1996
Jun;52(2):77-83
N'gouemo P, Baldy-Moulinier M, Nguemby-Bina C
Laboratoire de Medecine Experimentale, INSERM U249-CNRS UPR9008,
Montpellier, France.
This study investigates some pharmacological
effects of the ethanolic extract of the leaves of Desmodium adscendens
(Papillionaceae), a medicinal plant in the African traditional medicine,
on the central nervous system. The plant extract induced hypothermia and
had analgesic effect in mice. D. adscendens suppressed the tonic phase
of convulsion and mortality induced by pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) in mice.
In addition, the plant extract delayed the onset of PTZ forelimb clonus,
and generalized limbic seizures induced by kainic acid. In contrast, the
plant extract did not affect either tonic convulsion induced by maximal
electroshock in mice or the progression of limbic seizures towards the
status epilepticus in rats.
An activator of
calcium-dependent potassium channels isolated from a medicinal
herb.
Biochemistry 1993 Jun 22;32(24):6128-6133
McManus OB, Harris GH, Giangiacomo KM, Feigenbaum P, Reuben JP, Addy
ME,
Burka JF, Kaczorowski GJ, Garcia ML
Department of Membrane
Biochemistry and Biophysics, Merck Research Laboratories, Rahway, money1
Jersey 07065.
Large-conductance calcium-dependent potassium (maxi-K)
channels play an important role in regulating the tone of airway smooth
muscle and the release of bronchoconstrictive substances from nerves in
the lung. Crude extracts of Desmodium adscendens, a medicinal herb used
in Ghana as a treatment for asthma, inhibit binding of monoiodotyrosine
charybdotoxin (125I-ChTX) to receptor sites in bovine tracheal smooth
muscle membranes that have been shown to be associated with maxi-K
channels. Using this assay, three active components have been purified
and identified by NMR and MS. Comparison with authentic samples revealed
the three active components as the known triterpenoid glycosides
dehydrosoyasaponin I (DHS-I), soyasaponin I, and soyasaponin III. The
most potent of these compounds, DHS-I, is a partial inhibitor of
125I-ChTX binding (Ki = 120 nM, 62% maximum inhibition). Inhibition of
125I-ChTX binding is primarily due to a decrease in the observed maximum
number of binding sites, with a smaller decrease in affinity. DHS-I
increases the rate of toxin dissociation from its receptor, suggesting
that modulation of ChTX binding occurs through an allosteric mechanism.
DHS-I reversibly increases the open probability of maxi-K channels from
bovine tracheal smooth muscle incorporated into planar lipid bilayers
when applied to the intracellular, but not the extracellular, side of
the membrane at concentrations as low as 10 nM. In contrast, DHS-I had
no effect on several other types of potassium channels or membrane
transporters. This natural product is the first example of a
high-affinity activator of calcium-dependent potassium channels and is
the most potent known potassium channel opener.
Some secondary plant metabolites in Desmodium
adscendens and their effects on arachidonic acid
metabolism.
Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids
1992 Sep;47(1):85-91
Addy ME
Department of Biochemistry,
University of Ghana, Legon.
The effects of three chemically
different groups of compounds, (triterpenoid saponins,
beta-phenylethylamines and tetrahydroisoquinolines), known to be present
in Desmodium adscendens, on plasma membrane ion channel, cytochrome P450
NADPH-dependent oxygenation of arachidonic acid, and production of
prostaglandins by the cyclooxygenase enzyme system, are described. The
very high-conductance calcium-activated potassium ion channel, which is
responsible for the maintenance of tone in smooth muscles, was activated
by the saponins. The cytochrome P450 NADPH-dependent monooxygenase
reaction, which produces epoxy- and hydroxylated eicosanoids from
arachidonic acid metabolism, was inhibited by an analogue of the
tetrahydroisoquinoline present in the plant. This analogue also acted as
a reductant in the prostaglandin synthesizing system using microsomes
from ram seminal vesicles. The same system was activated by the
beta-phenylethylamines found in the plant material, with the formation
of more prostaglandins, the type being dependent on the amount of
cyclooxygenase enzyme used and the presence or absence of coenzyme.
Effect of Desmodium adscendens fraction 3 on
contractions of respiratory smooth muscle.
J
Ethnopharmacol 1990 Jul;29(3):325-335
Addy ME, Burka JF
Department of Biochemistry, University of Ghana, Legon.
The
third flash chromatography fraction prepared from an aqueous extract of
Desmodium adscendens leaves (DAF3) was evaluated for pharmacological
activity using contractions of tracheal spirals and lung parenchymal
strips caused by ovalbumin, arachidonic acid, histamine and carbachol.
DAF3 inhibited both the early and late phases of antigen-induced
contractions of both tissues dose-dependently, but had no effect on
arachidonic-induced contractions. With tracheal spirals, the inhibition
occurred whether the tissue was pretreated with indomethacin or not. On
tracheal spirals, the maximum contraction (Emax) caused by histamine and
carbachol were enhanced, but the pD2 value for histamine was not
affected while that for carbachol was decreased. DAF3 had no effect on
Emax or pD2 values for these agonists on lung parenchymal strips. The
results suggest that DAF3 may inhibit the release of free arachidonic
acid.
Effect of Desmodium
adscendens fractions on antigen- and arachidonic acid-induced
contractions of guinea pig airways.
Can J Physiol
Pharmacol 1988 Jun;66(6):820-825
Addy ME, Burka JF
Department of
Anatomy and Physiology, Atlantic Veterinary College, University of
Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, Canada.
Three fractions
(n-butanol, F2, and L5), isolated from an aqueous extract of Desmodium
adscendens, a plant used in Ghana for the management of asthma, were
evaluated for their pharmacological activity using ovalbumin and
arachidonic acid-induced contractions of guinea pig airways. All three
fractions inhibited the ovalbumin-induced contractions of
indomethacin-pretreated tracheal spirals from sensitized animals dose
dependently, but only L5 and n-butanol inhibited such contractions in
the absence of indomethacin. The concentrations required to inhibit
ovalbumin-induced contractions of lung parenchymal strips were threefold
higher than with trachea. The contractile response over a 60-min period
was divided into three phases. F2 and n-butanol inhibited all phases,
whereas L5 inhibited only the late phase. n-Butanol and L5 inhibited
arachidonic acid-induced contractions on indomethacin-pretreated
tracheal spirals, a leukotriene-dependent reaction. There was no
inhibition of arachidonic acid-induced contractions of lung parenchymal
strips, which is largely a thromboxane-dependent reaction. The results
suggest that D. adscendens contains several pharmacologically active
substances that can inhibit allergic airway smooth muscle contraction at
multiple sites, including the synthesis and (or) activity of the
bronchoconstrictor leukotrienes.
Dose-response effects of Desmodium adscendens aqueous
extract on histamine response, content and anaphylactic reactions in the
guinea pig.
J Ethnopharmacol 1986 Oct;18(1):13-20
Addy ME, Dzandu WK
Different concentrations of a hot water
extract of Desmodium adscendens, a plant used in Ghana to control
asthmatic attacks, were used in drinking water to evaluate the plant's
anti-anaphylactic properties in guinea pigs. The results show that the
extract's inhibition of histamine-induced ileal contraction is largely
competitive and that its effect of reducing lung histamine content is
dose-dependent. The results also show that the extract causes a
dose-dependent reduction in the amount of spasmogens released
anaphylactically and in anaphylactic-induced contraction of ileal
muscle.
Effects of the extracts of
Desmodium adscendens on anaphylaxis.
J Ethnopharmacol
1984 Aug;11(3):283-292
Addy ME, Awumey EM
Desmodium adscendens,
used by herbalists in Ghana for the treatment of asthma, is
anti-anaphylactic in vitro. As the plant material is administered
orally, in vivo studies of its anti-anaphylactic property were
undertaken using the guinea-pig. The results show that both aqueous and
ethanolic extracts of D. adscendens, when taken orally, reduce
anaphylactic contractions, interfere with histamine-induced
contractions, and reduce the amount of smooth muscle stimulating
substances released from lung tissue of guinea pigs. |
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