gingerol and magnolol

Limited evidence is available as to whether Kampo medicine modifies gastrointestinal function in humans. We investigated the effect of a Kampo medicine, Hange-koboku-to (Banxia-houpo-tang, HKT), on patients with functional dyspepsia (FD) and on healthy volunteers with regard to gastric motility. The gastric emptying rate (GER) in FD patients was significantly lower than in the healthy subjects. GER in FD patients and in healthy volunteers showed a significant increase after 2 weeks of medication with HKT. Furthermore, gastrointestinal symptoms improved significantly in the FD patients after the administration of HKT. These results suggest that HKT improves delayed gastric emptying and acts as a prokinetic agent.

Topics: Adult; Biphenyl Compounds; Catechols; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Drugs, Chinese Herbal; Dyspepsia; Fatty Alcohols; Female; Gastric Emptying; Humans; Lignans; Male; Medicine, Kampo; Middle Aged; Phytotherapy; Statistics, Nonparametric; Ultrasonography

Magnolol and honokiol, biphenyl compounds, were isolated as anti-emetic principles from the methanolic extract of Magnolia obovata bark. [6]-, [8]-, and [10]-shogaols and [6]-, [8]-, and [10]-gingerols were isolated from the methanolic extract of Zingiber officinale rhizome as anti-emetic principles. Some phenyl-propanoids with allyl side-chains were found to show the same activity. They inhibited the emetic action induced by the oral administration of copper sulfate pentahydrate to leopard and ranid frogs.

Topics: Animals; Antiemetics; Anura; Biphenyl Compounds; Catechols; Fatty Alcohols; Female; Lignans; Male; Plants, Medicinal