Radix Senegae

Definition
Radix Senegae consists of the dried roots and root crowns of Polygala senega L., Polygala
senega L. var. latifolia Torrey et Gray, or other closely related Polygala species
(Polygalaceae) (1-3).
Synonyms
Polygala senegum L. (1), P. rosea Steud., Senega officinalis Spach (4).
Selected vernacular names
Bambara, bulugh lon, gizr uththuban, Klapperschlangenwurzel, mountain flax, peuhl,
polygala de virginie, racine de polygala, racine de senega, Radix polygalae, Radix polygalae
senegae, rattlesnake root, seneca snakeroot, Senegakreuzblume, senega root, senega
snakeroot, Senegawurzel, snake root, szenega gykr, tsuknida, vahulill, virginische
Schlangenwurzel, yoruba (1-3,5-7).
Geographical distribution
Indigenous to eastern Canada and north-eastern United States of America (6-8).
Description
A perennial herbaceous plant with numerous stems sprouting from a single thick gnarled
crown arising from a conical, twisted, branched yellow root. Aerial portion consists of several
erect or ascending, smooth stems up to 15-40 cm high, bearing alternate, lanceolate or
oblong-lanceolate leaves with serrulate margins. Inflorescence a spike of small, white
flowers, which are almost sessile with rounded-obovate wings, concave with a short crested
carina (1, 7).
Plant material of interest: dried roots and root crowns
General appearance

Root crown greyish-brown, wider than the root; diameter of the root crown up to 3 cm,
gradually tapering to the tip; surface transversely and longitudinally striated, often shows a
more or less distinct decurrent, elongated spiral keel. Forms an irregular head consisting of
numerous remains of stems and tightly Radix Senegae packed purplish-brown to red buds.
Taproot, 0.5-1.5 cm in diameter and 3-20 cm in length, brown to yellow, occasionally
branched, sometimes flexuous, usually without secondary roots, except in the Japanese
varieties and species, which contain numerous fibrous branched rootlets. Fracture short and
shows a yellowish cortex of varying thickness surrounding a pale central woody area
somewhat circular or irregular in shape, depending on the species (1-3).
Organoleptic properties
Odour: characteristic, faint, sweet, slightly rancid or reminiscent of methyl salicylate,
sternutatory when in powder form; taste: sweet, subsequently acrid and irritating to the throat
(1-3).
Microscopic characteristics
Cork layer consisting of several rows of light-brown cork cells; secondary cortex composed
of parenchyma cells and sieve tubes, traversed by medullary rays, 1-3 cells wide. Phelloderm
of slightly collenchymatous cells containing droplets of oil. Phloem and xylem arrangement
usually normal, especially near the crown, but where a keel is present, it is formed by
increased development of phloem; other anomalous secondary development sometimes
occurs, resulting in formation of 1 or 2 large wedge-shaped rays in phloem and xylem, the
parenchymatous cells of which contain droplets of oil. Xylem usually central, consists of
vessels up to 60mm in diameter associated with numerous thinwalled tracheids and a few
small lignified parenchymatous cells. Starch grains and calcium oxalate crystals absent (1-3).
Powdered plant material
Light brown. Longitudinal fragments of lignified tissue made up of pitted tracheids and
somewhat larger vessels with numerous bordered pits or with reticulate thickening; yellowish
parenchyma and collenchymatous cells containing droplets of oil; occasional fragments of
cork and epidermal tissue with stomata and unicellular trichomes from bud scales. Calcium
oxalate crystals and stone cells are absent (1-3).

General identity tests

Macroscopic and microscopic examinations (1-3), chemical tests and froth formation (1, 2),
and thin-layer chromatography for the presence of saponins (3).
Purity tests
Microbiological
Tests for specific microorganisms and microbial contamination limits are as described in the
WHO guidelines on quality control methods for medicinal plants (9).
Foreign organic matter
Not more than 2% stems and not more than 1% other foreign matter (2).
Total ash
Not more than 6% (3).
Acid-insoluble ash
Not more than 2% (1, 2).
Alcohol-soluble extractive
Not less than 30% in 20% alcohol (2).
Loss on drying
Not more than 13% (2).
Pesticide residues
The recommended maximum limit of aldrin and dieldrin is not more than 0.05 mg/kg (3). For
other pesticides, see the European pharmacopoeia (3) and the WHO guidelines on quality
control methods for medicinal plants (9) and pesticide residues (10).
Heavy metals

For maximum limits and analysis of heavy metals, consult the WHO guidelines on quality
control methods for medicinal plants (9).
Radioactive residues
Where applicable, consult the WHO guidelines on quality control methods for medicinal
plants (9) for the analysis of radioactive isotopes.
Other purity tests
Chemical, sulfated ash and water-soluble extractive tests to be established in accordance with
national requirements.
Chemical assays
Quantitative analysis of triterpene saponins by high-performance liquid chromatography (11).
Major chemical constituents
Methyl salicylate (0.1-0.3%), the compound responsible for the characteristic odour of the
drug (12). The major reported biologically active constituents are triterpene saponins (6-16%)
(6, 8, 13). The saponins are 3-glucosides of presenegenin, which also contain at C-28 an
oligosaccharide chain that has a fucose moiety esterified with 3,4-dimethoxycinnamic or 4methoxycinnamic acid (14-16). The structures of the representative saponins are presented
below.

R1

R2

R3

(E)-senegasaponin A

E-MC

Api

(Z)-senegasaponin A

Z-MC

Api

desacylsenegasaponin A

Api

(E)-senegasaponin B

E-MC

(Z)-senegasaponin B

Z-MC

senegin II

E-DMC

(Z)-senegin II

Z-DMC

desacylsenegin II

(E)-senegin III

Rha

E-MC

(Z)-senegin III

Rha

Z-MC

desacylsenegin III

Rha

E-MC

R=H

E-DMC

R = OCH3

Z-MC

R=H

Z-DMC

R = OCH3

D-apio--D-furanosyl

6-deoxy--L-mannopyranosyl
Medicinal uses

Uses supported by clinical data

None.
Uses described in pharmacopoeias and in traditional systems of medicine
As an expectorant for symptomatic treatment of coughs due to bronchitis, emphysema and
catarrh of the upper respiratory tract (1, 6, 14, 17-19).
Uses described in folk medicine, not supported by experimental or clinical data
Treatment of amenorrhoea, asthma, constipation, rheumatism and snake bites (5).
Pharmacology
Experimental pharmacology
Expectorant activity
Intragastric administration of a fluidextract of Radix Senegae (0.1-10ml/kg body weight)
enhanced the production of respiratory tract fluid in decerebrate or anaesthetized animals.
Three to four hours after administration, the output of respiratory tract fluid increased by up
to 173% in cats and 186% in guineapigs, but no effect was observed in rabbits (20). In
another study, administration of a syrup of the root to anaesthetized dogs significantly
increased the volume of respiratory tract fluid within 5-30 minutes (P < 0.001); after 2 hours,
the fluid volume in the treatment group was 0.114ml as compared with 0.01 ml in control
animals treated with saline (21). Intragastric administration of a 50% methanol extract of the
root (2 g/kg body weight) inhibited stressinduced gastric ulcers in rats by 98.5% (22).
Intragastric administration of an aqueous suspension of a 50% methanol extract of the root (2
g/kg body weight) to rats reduced congestive oedema by 62% and significantly increased the
24- hour urine volume as compared with control animals (P < 0.01) (23).
Effect on blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels
Intraperitoneal administration of an n-butanol extract of the root (5 mg/kg body weight)
reduced blood triglyceride levels in mice fed a normal diet, and reduced blood cholesterol
and triglyceride levels in mice fed a high cholesterol diet (24).

Antihyperglycaemic activity
Intraperitoneal administration of an n-butanol extract of the roots (10mg/kg body weight)
reduced blood glucose levels in healthy mice and in mice with streptozocin-induced
hyperglycaemia (25). Intragastric administration of a saponin fraction of a root extract
reduced glucose-induced hyperglycaemia in rats at a dose of 200 mg/kg body weight (16).
Intraperitoneal administration of a saponin fraction of a root extract (25mg/kg body weight)
significantly increased the plasma levels of adrenocorticotropic hormone, cortisone and
glucose in rats (P < 0.01) (26). Intragastric administration of a 100% methanol extract of the
root decreased the absorption of ethanol in rats (500mg/kg body weight) (15).
Toxicity
The LD50 of the root was 17 g/kg body weight after intragastric administration to mice. The
LD50 of the root bark was 10 g/kg body weight and that of the root core (which had the lowest
saponin concentration of the three root samples) was 75 g/kg body weight (13).
Clinical pharmacology
Expectorant activity
The expectorant activity of the crude drug is due to the constituent saponins which produce
local irritation of the mucous membranes of the throat and respiratory tract. This irritation
stimulates an increase in bronchial secretions, thereby diluting the mucus, reducing its
viscosity and facilitating expectoration (19-21, 27, 28). Saponins may also reduce the surface
tension of mucus, thus reducing its viscosity (29). Oral administration of a fluidextract of the
root was shown to reduce the viscosity of mucus in patients with bronchiectasis (17).
Contraindications
Pregnancy (See Precautions).
Warnings
If coughing persists for more than 7 days, seek medical advice. Radix Senegae may
exacerbate existing gastrointestinal inflammations such as gastritis or gastric ulcers, and
excessive doses may cause vomiting (30).

Precautions
Carcinogenesis, mutagenesis, impairment of fertility
No mutagenic effects of an aqueous or 50% methanol extract of the root were observed in
the Bacillus subtilis recombination assay or in the microsome reversion assay in Salmonella
typhimurium strains TA98 and TA100 (31).
Pregnancy: teratogenic effects
See Contraindications.
Pregnancy: non-teratogenic effects
Traditional uses for Radix Senegae include its use as an emmenagogue (5). As extracts of the
root have been shown to stimulate uterine contractions in animal models (32), Radix Senegae
should not be taken during pregnancy.
Other precautions
No information available on general precautions or precautions concerning drug interactions;
drug and laboratory test interactions; nursing mothers; or paediatric use. Therefore, Radix
Senegae should not be administered during lactation or to children without medical
supervision.
Adverse reactions
Overdose with Radix Senegae preparations may cause nausea, diarrhoea and vomiting due to
gastrointestinal upset (13). In sensitive individuals, gastrointestinal upset may occur even at
the therapeutic dosage (33, 34).
Dosage forms
Chopped crude drug for decoctions and extracts (6, 18). Store in a tightly closed container,
protected from light and humidity (3).
Posology

(Unless otherwise indicated)

Daily dosage: 1.5-3.0 g crude drug as an infusion or decoction in divided doses (18, 35). A
60% ethanol extract (made slightly alkaline with dilute ammonia): 0.9-3 ml; tincture: 2.5-7.5
g. Equivalent preparations (18).
References
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12. Hayashi S, Kameoka H. Volatile compounds of Polygala senega L. var. latifolia Torrey et
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component, senegin-II, affects lipid metabolism in normal and hyperlipidemic
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