Is pokeweed poisonous?

Phytolacca Americana is an invasive plant, also known as Phytolacca, Phytolacca, etc., native to North America, seeds can be spread by birds, black seeds with luster, flowering in summer, cultivated in most parts of the country, mostly for ornamental use. the root has the effect of relieving cough, diuresis and detumescence. Let's take a look at whether Phytolacca Americana is poisonous.

Is Phytolacca Americana poisonous?

The whole plant of Phytolacca Americana is poisonous, and its roots and fruits are the most toxic. Because its rhizome is very similar to ginseng, it is often mistaken for ginseng, which needs to be taken with vigilance. Phytolacca Americana poisoning severe vomiting or dry choking, from the mouth to the stomach have a burning sensation, abdominal convulsions, diarrhea, and even heart paralysis to death.

Medicinal efficacy of Phytolacca Americana

1. Diarrhea and diuresis: Phytolacca has bitter taste, cold nature, main sedimentation, dredging and defecation, so that water dampness can be separated by two stools, so it can be used to treat edema, beriberi, jaundice and other syndrome.

2. Reducing swelling and dispersing knots: Phytolacca is bitter, cold and poisonous, bitter can relieve dryness and dampness, cold can clear heat and make fire, and poison can attack poison with poison, so it can be used to treat carbuncle, sore, throat arthralgia and other diseases.

Pharmacological effects of Phytolacca Americana

1. Enhance cellular immunity: Phytolacca saponins can promote leukocyte phagocytosis in mice. Pokeweed saponin is a bioactive substance that activates nucleotide reductase, which can stimulate the activity of B cells to thymidine and promote DNA metabolism, so it has the function of enhancing cellular immunity. PWM can also stimulate mouse spleen lymphocytes to produce IgM with the help of T cells.

2. Adrenocorticotropic function: Phytolacca does not have adrenocortical hormone-like effect, but through the influence of the central nervous system to stimulate the pituitary-suprarenal adenocortical system. Its ethanol extract could significantly reduce the content of vitamin C in adrenal gland of rats. Ethanol extract had obvious inhibitory effect on formalin-induced foot swelling in rats. Phytolacca triterpenoid acid also has obvious anti-inflammatory effect.

3. Diuresis and diarrhea: the extract of Phytolacca root infused into toad kidney could dilate the capillaries, accelerate the blood flow and increase the urine volume obviously. The potassium also promotes the diuretic effect. Low dose is beneficial to diuresis, while high dose reduces urine volume.

4. Antitussive, antiasthmatic and expectorant effect: alkaloids have obvious antitussive effect, while Phytolacca decoction and tincture have no antitussive effect. Decoction and tincture have obvious expectorant effect, and the effect of decoction is the strongest. Phytolacca sapogenin also has a significant expectorant effect. Phytolacca alkaloids have no expectorant effect. The expectorant mechanism is the result of direct stimulation of respiratory mucosa, increase of glandular secretion and promotion of ciliary movement. Subcutaneous injection of decoction and tincture in guinea pigs had no antiasthmatic effect.

5. Antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and antiviral: decoction and tincture have inhibitory effect on influenza virus. Phytolacca Americana peptide is an antiviral protein that can inhibit the replication of mammalian poliovirus and treat poliomyelitis. Water decoction and tincture have inhibitory effect on influenza bacilli, many kinds of dysentery bacilli and pneumococci, as well as skin fungi. Triterpene acid from Phytolacca acinosa has anti-inflammatory effect, and its anti-inflammatory effect on foot swelling in rats is similar to that of hydrocortisone.