Fwd: [SoFlaVegans] Mechanism proposed for black cohosh menopause benefits

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Mechanism proposed for black cohosh menopause benefits

By Stephen Daniells

12/11/2006

 

http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=72684 & m=2niud13 & c=qdrhrvoeraoqydo

 

Scientists from the University of Illinois in Chicago

have reported for the first time just how black cohosh

may alleviate hot flushes in menopausal women -

information previously lacking about the herb.

 

Black cohosh (referred to by the European Medicines

Agency, or EMEA, as Cimicifugae racemosae rhizome) is

a member of the buttercup family, and is a perennial

plant native to North America. It has a long history

of use for by women to reduce menopausal symptoms such

as hot flushes.

 

Historically it has been a popular alternative to

hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in many countries

including the UK, where it is estimated that 9 million

days worth of black cohosh supplements were purchased

in 2004.

 

Despite this popularity, how exactly the herb could

benefit women with hot flushes has eluded

clarification until now. The new research, from

scientists at the University of Illinois in Chicago

and the National Institutes of Health (UIC/NIH) Center

for Botanical Dietary Supplements Research, reports

that the herb may act on human opiate receptors which

play a role in body temperature regulation.

 

Opiate receptors are chemical sensors that are

associated with activation by opiates like morphine

and heroin. However, other chemical substances may

also bind to the opiate receptors and activate the

appropriate response including pain control, an immune

response, or other body functions including core

temperature regulation.

 

The new study used an ethanol extract of black cohosh

and found that constituent(s) of the herb could bind

to the human mu-opiate receptor (hMOR) associated with

mood, body temperature and sex hormone levels.

 

" The opiate receptor system affects several aspects of

female reproductive neuroendocrinology, such as the

control of sex hormones, " wrote lead author Mee-Ra

Rhyu.

 

Hot flushes are suggested to be the result of flawed

body core temperature settings, controlled by the

central nervous system (CNS), which in turn is

regulated by the opiate system, said the researchers.

 

" Opiates can therefore alter core temperature setting

directly or indirectly, " they said. " Striking

similarities exist between opiate withdrawal and

menopausal hot flushes.”

 

This is the first time that scientists have linked

constituents of black cohosh to human opiate

receptors.

 

Significantly, the extract used in this in vitro study

is the same that is being used in a phase II clinical

trial currently underway and being conducted by

researchers from the UIC/NIH Center for Botanical

Dietary Supplements Research.

 

“Therefore, botanical dietary supplements containing

opiate activity are expected to have beneficial

effects in relieving menopausal symptoms, including

hot flushes,” concluded the researchers.

 

“The opiate agonistic activity of black cohosh may

explain at least in part its efficacy in alleviating

menopausal symptoms.”

 

The research may be good news for the herbal industry,

but this year black cohosh has been in the news for

new labelling requirements in some markets.

 

Fears over a rare causal link between black cohosh and

liver damage have this year led to Australia's

Therapeutics Goods Administration and the UK's

Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency to

require warning statements to appear on product

packaging, and the European Medicines Agency and

Health Canada to issue public safety statements.

 

The mechanism behind these potential problems has not

been elucidated however and a recent court case in the

US (Grant and Beck v Pharmavite and Nutraceutical

Corp) ruled that research has consistently held that

black cohosh is non-hepatoxic.

 

According to the American Herbal Products

Association's (AHPA) most recent Tonnage Survey of

Select North American Wild-Harvested Plants, the herb

was the second most harvested plant, with 159 tons

from wild sources and 0.2 tons from cultivated

sources.

 

Source: Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry

Published on-line ahead of print, doi:

10.1021/jf062808u

“Black cohosh (Actaea racemosa, Cimicifuga racemosa)

behaves as a mixed competitive ligand and partial

agonist at the human mu-opiate receptor”

Authors: M-E. Rhyu, J. Lu, D.E. Webster, D.S.

Fabricant, N.R. Farnsworth, Z.J. Wang

 

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