Sanguisorba officinalis

Sanguisorba officinalis, commonly known as great burnet, is a plant in the family Rosaceae, subfamily Rosoideae. It is native throughout the cooler regions of the Northern Hemisphere in Europe, northern Asia, and northern North America.

Great burnet
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Rosaceae
Genus: Sanguisorba
Species:
S. officinalis
Binomial name
Sanguisorba officinalis
Synonyms[1]
List
    • Pimpinella officinalis (L.) Lam.
    • Poterium boreale Salisb.
    • Poterium officinale (L.) A.Gray
    • Poterium officinale (L.) F.B.Forbes & Hemsl.
    • Sanguisorba altissima Moench
    • Sanguisorba andersonii G.Don
    • Sanguisorba auriculata Scop.
    • Sanguisorba baicalensis Popl.
    • Sanguisorba bracteosa Besser ex Eichw.
    • Sanguisorba carnea Fisch. ex Link
    • Sanguisorba cernua Besser
    • Sanguisorba cordifolia Opiz
    • Sanguisorba cylindrica Charb.
    • Sanguisorba glandulosa Kom.
    • Sanguisorba hispanica Mill.
    • Sanguisorba komaroviana Nedol.
    • Sanguisorba longa (Kitag.) Kitag.
    • Sanguisorba major Gilib.
    • Sanguisorba media L.
    • Sanguisorba menziesii Rydb.
    • Sanguisorba microcephala C.Presl
    • Sanguisorba montana Jord. ex Boreau
    • Sanguisorba neglecta G.Don
    • Sanguisorba officinalis var. dilutiflora (Kitag.) Liou & C.Y.Li
    • Sanguisorba officinalis subsp. glandulosa (Kom.) Kamelin & Gubanov
    • Sanguisorba officinalis var. globularis (Nakai ex T.Kawamoto) W.Lee
    • Sanguisorba officinalis var. latifoliata Liou & C.Y.Li
    • Sanguisorba officinalis subsp. microcephala (C.Presl) Calder & Roy L.Taylor
    • Sanguisorba officinalis f. pallescens Asai
    • Sanguisorba officinalis f. pilosella (Ohwi) H.Hara
    • Sanguisorba polygama F.Nyl.
    • Sanguisorba praecox Besser ex Rchb.
    • Sanguisorba rubra Schrank
    • Sanguisorba sabauda Mill.
    • Sanguisorba serotina Jord.
    • Sanguisorba taurica Juz.
    • Sanguisorba unsanensis Nakai
The dry fruits contain the achenes which contain the seeds

It is a herbaceous perennial plant growing to 1 m tall, which occurs in grasslands, growing well on grassy banks. It flowers June or July.[2]

Sanguisorba officinalis is an important food plant for the European large blue butterflies Phengaris nausithous and P. teleius.[3]

Commercial uses

edit

Use is made of its extensive root system for erosion control, as well as a bioremediator, used to reclaim derelict sites such as landfills.

Ornamental

edit

Sanguisorba officinalis is one of several Sanguisorba species cultivated as ornamental plants. The cultivar 'Tanna' is widely available, and has won the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[4] The synonym Sanguisorba menziesii is also listed as having gained the Award.[5]

Ethnomedical uses

edit

It has been used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) where it is known by the name Di Yu. It is said to cool the blood, stop bleeding, clear heat, and heal wounds (Chinese Herbal Materia Medica by Dan Bensky).

Specifically, the root is used to stop bloody dysentery, nosebleeds, and is applied topically to treat burns and insect bites.[citation needed]

Phytochemistry

edit

Sanguiin H-6 is a dimeric ellagitannin that can be found in S. officinalis.[6]

Ziyuglycoside II is a triterpenoid saponin that can be found in S. officinalis.[7]

References

edit
  1. ^ "Sanguisorba officinalis L." Plants of the World Online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
  2. ^ Plants for a Future: Sanguisorba officinalis
  3. ^ World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1996. Maculinea nausithous. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 6 October 2010
  4. ^ "Sanguisorba 'Tanna'". www.rhs.org. Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  5. ^ "Sanguisorba menziesii". The Royal Horticultural Society. 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
  6. ^ Bastow KF, Bori ID, Fukushima Y, Kashiwada Y, Tanaka T, Nonaka G, Nishioka I, Lee KH (June 1993). "Inhibition of DNA topoisomerases by sanguiin H-6, a cytotoxic dimeric ellagitannin from Sanguisorba officinalis". Planta Med. 59 (3): 240–5. doi:10.1055/s-2006-959659. PMID 8391144.
  7. ^ Zhu X, Wang K, Zhang K, Zhu L, Zhou F (May 2014). "Ziyuglycoside II induces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis through activation of ROS/JNK pathway in human breast cancer cells". Toxicol. Lett. 227 (1): 65–73. doi:10.1016/j.toxlet.2014.03.015. PMID 24680927.