ALFALFA
ALFALFA
Alfalfa
;
German
: Blaue Luzerne,
English
:
Alfalfa
, Lucerne.
Aerial parts.
Trilobuladas toothed leaves and flowers in blue
violet
grouped in clusters, coiled in the form of pods helix, which contains seeds and bright knots and with woody roots.
Alfalfa
a
typical example of the
genera
of the subfamily of Lotoideas (Faboideas)
Source
.
Alfalfa
(not to be confused with Stipa tenacissima L. Poacea) is
a
tetraploid
natural
,
spontaneous
in Europe (south of latitude 42) You can easily hybridizing with other species of the genus, for example, with M. falcata (M. x half Pers)
Chemical composition.
The study of Genina
has
shown that it is derived from neutral oleaneno (soyasapo - genoles) or acid (acid medicagénico, hederagenina, acid oleanólico) The heterósidos found in all organs, as well as upcoming species such as M. media [5] The use of structural complexes,
has
enabled heterósidos show that the roots of the variety "Lutetia" are in heterósidos 3 esters osídicos in 28 acid medicagénico and the hederagenina. They can carry six molecules dare [6] The aerial parts of the North
American
varieties have similar structures containing, on its part osídica, an acid urónico: soyasaponina I azuquisaponinas [7]
They know other components whose presence is important:
protein
(20%) canavanine, and naphthoquinone benzo (for example,
vitamin K
) polyols, glycero - glucolípidos, cumarinas (cumestrol) quaternary amino acids) Leaves infested with fungus produced numerous cumestanos. It
has
also revealed the presence of isoflavones and acidic phenols, as well as many minerals:
calcium
,
phosphorus
,
iron
,
zinc
,
copper
,
selenium
, silica.
Pharmacological data.
Administered in large doses to ruminants, the saponosides of
alfalfa
are revealed toxic. In the cold - blooded animals, are fungistáticos, some are blood and seem to interfere with the
activity
of certain enzymes. Its properties have been linked to estrogenic isoflavones. The cumestrol, coumarin of the road whose molecular structuresare related to those of estradiol, also
has
estrogenic properties. The addition of
alfalfa
rabbit's diet to prevent high blood
cholesterol
and
atherosclerosis
. The same is true in monkeys, which have carefully studied the effects of saponosides the absorption and excretion of
cholesterol
,
lipidemia
and excretion of bile acids.
A
study conducted over
a
long
period
of time in rabbits subjected to
a
regime rich in
cholesterol
, shows that the seeds of
alfalfa
and saponosides decrease
cholesterol
. In the mouse, there is an increase in
cholesterol
and fat fecal. These effects are due to the ownership of many saponosides to form insoluble combinations with
cholesterol
(also used as
a
method of isolating these molecules) tested in vitro, rat. It
has
not yet been proven to work in humans.
Employment.
Drug use is restricted, at least in Western Europe. Although some animal species have been observed effects on growth, sensitivity varies between them.
A
rat study, tends to prove the absence of toxicity of saponosides administered over
a
long
period
of time. The richness of the plant in vitamins and
calcium
, as well as the presence of phytoestrogens ago that the carrier is used in the treatment of
osteoporosis
.
The drug.
The stems of
alfalfa
are angular and Ramos. The leaflets, alternate and nearly linear, toothed are at the top and end up in
a
small tip. Presents stipules oval - lanceolate, toothed at its base and acuminate. The heads grouped five to forty feet short of flowers. The fruit is
a
pod on
a
variable:
straight
, arched, spiraling from 1 to 3 laps, never thorny. Have developed different spectrophotometric or chromatographic techniques (including gas chromatography and thin layer chromatography) to perform the evaluation of saponosides present in the drug.
Bibliography.
Y. BIRK and I. PERI.
Saponins. In:
Toxic constitute of plant foodstuff, i.
e
. Lien, ed. New York, Academic Press,
p
. 161 - 182, 1980.
I. Kitagawa, M. Yoshikawa,
H
.
K
. WANG, M. SAITO, V TOSIRISUK,
T
. Fujiwara and
K
. I. Tomita.
Revised structures of soyasapogenols
A
, B and
E
, oleanene - sapogenols from
soybean
. Structure of soyasaponins I, II and III.
Chem. Phar. Bull. 30, 2294 - 2297, 1982; see also I. Kitagawa et al. Ibid. 36, 153 - 161, 1988.
S. SHANY, B. Gestetner, Y. BIRK,
A
. BONDI and I. KIRSON.
Isolation of hederagenin and its saponin from
alfalfa
(Medicago
sativa
) Isr. J. Chem. 10, 881 - 884, 1972; see also B. Gestetner, Phytochemistry, 10, 2221 2223, 1971.
L. G. WEST.
Identification of oleanolic acid from sapogenins present in lucerne (
alfalfa
) root.
J. Sci. Food Agric. 30, 540 - 542, 1979.
W. OLESZEK and M. JURZYSTA.
Isolation, chemical characterization and biological
activity
of
alfalfa
(Medicago half Pers. Root saponins.
Acta Soc. Bot. Pol. 55, 22 - 23, 1986.
G. MASSIOT,
C
. LAVAUD, L. LE MEN - OLIVIER, G. VAN BINST, S.
P
.
F
. MILLER and
H
. M. FALES.
Structural elucidation of
alfalfa
root saponins by mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic renonance analysis.
J. Chem. Soc. Beijing I, 3071 - 3079, 1988.
I. Kitagawa,
T
. TANIYAMA,
T
. MURAKAMI, M. YOSHIHARA and M. Yoshikawa.
Saponin and sapogenol. XLVI. On the part of constituents in aereal
american
alfalfa
, Medicago
sativa
L.
The Structure of dehidrosoyasoponin I.
Yakygaku Zasshi, 108, 547 - 554, 1988.
R. W. MILLER, G.
F
. SPENCER and
A
. R. SPENCER.
5 ' - Methoxisativan,
a
new isoflavan from
alfalfa
.
J. Nat. Prod. 52, 634 - 636, 1989; see also
P
. M. DEWICK, Isoflavonoids, in: The flavonoids: advances in research, JB Harborne and
T
. J. Mabry, eds. London, Chapman and Hall,
P
. 535 - 640, 1982.
R. MALINOW, W.
E
. CONNOR,
P
. McLaughlin,
C
. STAFFORD,
D
. S. LIN,
A
. L. LIVINGSTON, G. O. KOHLER and W.
P
. McNULTY.
Cholesterol
and bile acid balance in Maraca fascicularis. Effects of
alfalfa
saponins.
M. R. MALINOW,
P
. McLaughlin,
C
. STAFFORD,
A
. L. LIVINGSTON and G. O. KOHLER.
Alfalfa
saponins and
alfalfa
seeds. Dietary effects in
cholesterol
- fed rabbits.
Atherosclerosis
37. 433 - 438, 1980.
J.
A
. STORY, S. L. LEPAGE, M. S. PETRO, L. G. WEST, M. M. CASSIDY,
F
. G. Lightfoot and G. V. VAHOUNY.
Interactions of
Alfalfa
plant and sprout saponins with choleterol in vitro and in
cholesterol
- fed rat.
Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 39, 917 - 929, 1984.
M. R. MALINOW, W.
P
. McNULTY,
P
. McLaughlin,
C
. STAFFORD,
A
.
K
. BURNS,
A
. L. LIVINGSTON and G. O. KOHLER.
The toxicity of
alfalfa
saponins in rats.
Fd.
Cosmet
. Toxicol. 19, 443 - 445, 1981.
M. MOHSIN and
A
.
K
. PAL.
Indian
J. Exp. Biol. 7, 15 - 76, 1977.
D
. RAO and G. BORIE.
Simple gas chromatographic method for the determination of medicagenic acid in
alfalfa
(Medicago
sativa
)
J. Chromatogr. 410) 169 - 175, 1987; see also:
W. OLESZEK, Solid - phase extraction - fractionation of
alfalfa
saponins, J. Sci. Food Agric. 44, 43 - 49, 1988.
Diseases
whose treatment is appropriate in this plant.
Nervous
spasm.
Menopause
.
Osteoarthritis
.
Osteoporosis
.
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